Kiss From a Rose
by Liz's Dystopia
Summary: Bastion's fallen in love with a girl unlike any other. She's originally shy, sweet, and kind, but you say her nickname, her personality changes completely, to a known, asskicking rebel who doesn't take crap from anyone. She is also hiding deadly secrets..
1. Prologue

**Kiss From a Rose**

My first YGO GX fanfic so bare with me on this. She was always so quiet and shy around the other Obelisk blue students, and hardly went anywhere outside her dorm room or the classes. However, when she accidentally bumps into Misawa Daichi/Bastion, she leaves behind an unknown card called "Sprite Interchange." Daichi takes it for safekeeping, and, being the gentleman he is, he intends to return it. However, something gets in the way. Asuka/Alexis learns that the girl has a hidden crush on someone at the academy, and what makes everything confusing is that she acts sweet, kind, shy, and quiet, but when she is dueling, not only is she a strong and amazing duelist, she also acts like a completely different person. Moreover, when someone calls her by her nickname, this person is revealed and takes over until her full name is spoken. What is going on with this girl? Romance, Humor, a bit of violence, and Angst.

* * *

Character Information

Name: Akatsuki Manami

Alias: Akatsuki Nami

Deck Type: Dark Creatures and Spellcasters

Signature Card: Sprite Interchange (as a heads up, the cards she uses I made up, so don't sue. And I'll try to be fair for this.)

Race: Human

Gender: Female

Age: 16

Hair: Black

Eyes: Silver

Height: 5' 9"

Weight: 105 lbs.

Status: Obelisk Blue Freshman

Notes: Akatsuki Manami is my own character, supposedly represents, not the real me, but the FD everyone knows and loves. The person I am on this site. Manami is normally a shy, quiet, and kind girl who appeared out of nowhere and was accepted at the Duel Academy after her entrance exam. When she dueled that day, she defeated her proctor in less than two moves, which surprised everyone, but since that day, has not dueled since. She was immediately put in Obelisk Blue, even though she was a freshman, and,(this'll surprise many people), she insisted on being in Osiris Red. But her suggested was immediately denied when her grades and dueling talent are thoroughly searched.

Since she arrived at the Duel Academy, Manami has been somewhat a shadow in the sun, so to speak. No one truly noticed her, because she was so quiet and shy, and hardly went outside her dorm room besides to classes. That was, until a rumor started to spread about the school about her liking one of the boys at the academy, and then she became noticed. Boys now flirt with her and question her of who it is she likes, but no one knows. In fact, some may even believe there isn't a boy who she likes, but a rumor she started herself to gain attention. The choice is yours to believe.

However, as you may find in the fanfiction story that I have just made, Manami may hold some similarities to Asuka/Alexis. Manami is very dedicated to one of her family members, but not towards a brother or sibling,(which she has two of, both boys, one older than her, the other younger.) Manami is very dedicated to one person and one person only, and that is her father. Strong, shy, smart, and talented, Manami may be considered a lot of things, but one thing separates her from normal teenage girls.

Whenever her nickname is called, or whenever she's in a duel, she starts to change...personalities, that is. She goes from the shy, quiet, self-conscious girl to a powerfully strong, loud, and self-confident rebel girl who--might I say--kicks ass! However, once the duel ends, or her original name is called, she turns back into the original, shy, Manami. This evolves into a mystery as it is seen quite early in the story.

Anyways, there's a little bit of information to tell you about my OC, and if there are any problems or comments, please let me know, and I'll try to change them. I don't want this girl sounding like a Mary-Sue, so please let me know if you see that around at all. Thanks, and enjoy!

* * *

Prologue

The waves splashed across the shores of the island in which the Duel Academy stood upon. Several of the students had fallen away from their classes and had wandered onto the beaches or fields to enjoy the day. The clear blue sky seemed to shine brightly as the sun hung high over their heads. Rushing from one class to another was an older boy, his dark hair being billowed softly, while his dark, matching eyes scanned the courtyard of the school, searching for anyone he knew. He quickly stopped to realize what time it was. He had enough time to meet his friends. The break had only just begun between the first period class and third. He quickly moved over towards the front steps and sat upon one to wait. As he sat there, he opened one of his notebooks he carried, and flipped through the pages filled with mathematics and formulas. He began reading these theorems, formulas, and equations as if they were a book, while he waited for them to appear.

* * *

A few yards away, buried within her own sketchbook, was a young girl whose long black hair fell over her shoulders and gently fell onto the pages. Her hands seemed to drag the pencil over them like a river through Egypt. Her silver eyes, piercing and flashing beneath the shadows cast by her hair, seem to wander into thoughts and ideas deep within her mind. Her fare face glowed in the shadows elegantly, although no one paid notice to this Gothic beauty. Her blue school uniform sparkled in the sunlight radiating off her, although she moved occasionally to find the shade cast by the tree above. She did not look up from her sketchpad as she drew a beautiful picture of the ocean and horizon that you could see from the hill she sat upon. If one were to see such a drawing, they would not believe that a child would have created it. Several times, she closed her eyes to feel the soft wind surround her, but then would reopen them to finish and analyze her creation. As the waves crashed against the shores of the beach, the soft wind billowing her hair, her mind began to wander to somewhere else, to someone else. 

A person she doubted even knew she existed. This person was so smart, so charming, that she would not even be considered one of his inner circle. He was a very strong duelist at the academy, stronger than she was, and if they were to meet, she doubted she knew what to say. He was an excellent duelist, as she has seen many of them take place, but he was in a dormitory lower than hers was. How was she to get close to him without being humiliated?

* * *

"Hey, Daichi, what's up!" a voice called to the young boy. He looked up from his equations to see two boys approach him. One was a boy with wild, unruly brown hair and matching brown eyes. His energetic smile seemed to flash in the sun. Beside him was a small boy whose light blue, also wild, hair seemed to billow in the wind, his shy, light gray eyes lowered in a soft shy way. 

"You're late!" Daichi snapped at them playfully. The brunette laughed nervously.

"Sorry. We had to run all the way up from the beach," he spoke. The boy smiled, and then stood up from the stairs to face his friends.

"How often are you going to use that excuse?" he teased. The boy didn't answer.

"Anyway, you ready, Daichi?" the blue haired boy spoke.

"I'm just waiting for Judai to come up with a better excuse," Daichi spoke.

"That's the truth! Come on, Sho, we don't need this!" Judai teased his friend.

As the three boys walked into the school, a young girl ran right past them, nearly sending Daichi back into his friends. He looked up at the girl, who had disappeared in a flash of black and blue into the building.

"Who was that? And why was she in such a rush?" Judai asked.

"I don't know. I don't recognize her from around the school," Daichi spoke.

"Oh, that's Akatsuki Manami. She's in Obelisk Blue," a voice spoke.

The boys turned to see a tall, beautiful girl approach them. Her light, blondish-brown hair flowed past her shoulders and down her back, her dark eyes holding such a focus and intensity, yet some soft and marvelous light.

"Asuka, you know her?" Judai asked.

"Not really. She mostly keeps to herself. But she's an amazing artist," Asuka spoke to them. "She drew a picture of my brother once. It surprised me that she is that talented."

"Is she a good duelist? She must be if she's in Obelisk Blue," Judai asked. Asuka lowered her eyes slightly.

"Yes, she's a good duelist. But there's something about her that's not right," Asuka spoke.

"What do you mean?" Judai asked. Asuka didn't answer, because right then the bell rang for the next class, and she disappeared to the other side of the building. Judai exchanged looks with his friends, and then had an idea.

* * *

The girl raced down the hall to reach her next class as the bell had just rung. She didn't want to be late. Then after that, she would go to her dorm room and hide out there until dinner. Her black hair seemed to billow behind her elegantly, her silver eyes scanning each passing doorway and classroom. As she ran, a voice called out to her, stopping her dead in her tracks. "Hey, Nami!" 

She seemed to just freeze on the spot, and her body went rigid slightly. She shuddered, and then turned to the three boys approaching her. Her silver eyes had narrowed, and they had darkened so shadows swam within them. The three boys approaching her were Yuki Judai, Misawa Daichi, and Marufuji Sho. They stopped before her.

"Hey, you're Nami, right?" Judai asked.

"Yeah, who wants to know?" she asked them in a stern, serious voice

"I do. I'm Yuki Judai, this is Misawa Daichi, and Sho Marufuji," Judai spoke, introducing his friends. She smiled darkly at them.

"Pleasure. And what do I owe this pleasure?" she spoke sarcastically to them.

"Asuka told us that you're an excellent artist. Mind if we see some of your drawings?" Sho asked.

"Sure," she held out her sketchpad to them, and they took it. Judai began flipping through the pages while his two friends were looking over his shoulder at the drawings.

"Wow. These are very beautiful, Manami," Daichi spoke to her.

She suddenly went silent, and her eyes went blank. Then she let out a soft sigh, and she stepped back only slightly. Then she stared at them, and Daichi saw her face glow red at them looking through her sketchbook. She quickly snatched it back and ran in the opposite direction toward her dorm room without another word. The boys stood there, dumbstruck by her sudden actions, and then Judai spoke.

"What was that about?" he asked.


	2. The Sprite

Chapter I: The Sprite

* * *

The morning sun seemed to welcome the young students at the Duel Academy. The ocean surrounding the island in which the large school stood upon seemed to be calm and soothing, especially with the passing of a full moon A young girl crossed the grounds of the Obelisk Blue girl dormitory, her long brownish-blond hair billowing in the soft wind while her brown eyes focused dreamily on the ocean. Her Obelisk Blue jacket seemed to pierce in the sun. She stared out at the ocean, and then looked towards where a tall tree stood. Sitting beneath it in the dark shade was another girl buried deep within her sketchpad. The other girl's long black hair billowed elegantly in the cool wind, while her piercing, starling silver eyes looked up every so often at the ocean. The blond approached her, and could see bits of what she was drawing. However, before she could speak, the brunette spoke before her.

"Asuka, do you mind? I'm trying to draw here," the girl spoke coldly and sternly to her.

"Oh, sorry, Manami," Asuka spoke softly. The girl suddenly froze, her hand hovering slightly over the paper, and then the shadows that were dancing in her eyes suddenly disappeared. Then she continued to draw as if Asuka wasn't even there. Asuka walked away, but she knew something was not right with the girl. As she walked back towards the dorm, a familiar, sarcastic, annoying voice spoke from behind her.

"Hey, Manami, what are you doing, baby?"

Asuka, disgusted to hear the voice, turned to see a boy approach the other girl under the tree. His wild, spiky dark hair hovered over his piercing dark eyes. His dark blue coat surrounded his body, while two other goons followed closely behind him. Manjoume Jun, another Obelisk Blue student, and one who was both ignorant and annoying. The girl paid no notice to him, but just continued drawing.

"Come on, Manami, dear, aren't you going to say hi?" the boy spoke to her. She didn't respond, but continued drawing, as if he wasn't there.

"Come on, Jun, take her sketchpad. Let's see what she's drawing," one of the goons spoke behind him.

He better not, Asuka thought. Jun smiled, and then in a flash, snatched the sketchbook out of her hands. Her eyes widened in horror, and she stood up, trying to get her book back.

"No! Please! Give it back!" she pleaded, reaching for it, but Jun held it out from her at arms reach. He tossed it to one of his goons, who tossed it to the other one.

"Come on, Manami, I just want to see what you're drawing," Jun spoke teasingly.

"No! Don't!" she pleaded again, racing to the one who held it, but he threw it to Jun.

"Give it back to her!" Asuka demanded, running towards the four of them. Nevertheless, they did not listen.

"Come on, what's so special that you can't pay attention to me, Nami?" Jun asked teasingly, throwing the book back to the first goon.

At that moment, Manami's eyes narrowed in anger, shadows swam to the surface, and she bared her teeth like a beast. Before Asuka could act, she grabbed Jun's arm, and twisted it all the way back behind him. Then her foot swiped at his ankles, knocking him off the ground, and the moment he was in the air, she released him so he fell straight onto the ground with a hard bounce off his front and onto his back. Then she turned to the goons, and one ran forward at her, but her knee rose and collided hard into his abdomen. He let out a groan of pain and doubled over, clutching his stomach. Then Asuka ran towards the last one and slapped the sketchbook out of his hand. It fell to the ground and flipped open. She paid no notice to this as Manami ran forward to him and collided her ankle with his arm, and Asuka heard a loud, chilling crack in the air. The goon let out a yell of pain as he fell to his knees, clutching his arm, which was broken. She then turned to the three of them, her eyes glaring angrily at them.

"I suggest you three idiots get to the hospital wing now before I break more than just your arms," she spoke in a stern, angry, yet calm voice. The three of them stood up and ran in the opposite direction, while she yelled after them. "YOU GUYS TOUCH MY STUFF AGAIN, I'LL KILL YOU!"

Asuka was surprised that she had beaten them up, and looked down at the sketchpad. It had flipped open to a page where Manami had drawn a boy next to a dragon. She recognized that boy from somewhere, but she didn't know where. She was too amazed by the sudden personality change Manami had made. She picked up the sketchpad and closed it so it would not seem like she was being nosy.

"Wow, Manami, that was amazing!" Asuka spoke. Manami didn't turn to her, her body had become still for a moment, her black hair billowing in the wind elegantly. Then she turned to Asuka, the shadows gone from her eyes, and a confused expression on her face.

"Hmm?" she sighed, and Asuka held out her book. "Thanks, Asuka."

"That was so cool! You beat those three idiots like nothing!" Asuka cheered. Manami gave her a confused look, but then turned towards the dorm and walked off.

"I'll see you later, Asuka," she spoke softly and shyly as she disappeared into the dorm.

Asuka was confused by how the girl seemed shy and quiet, and when Jun took her book, it was as if she could not defend for herself. Then her personality changed, and she beat all three of them at once. That was amazing. She had to tell Judai about this.

* * *

"What do you mean 'beat?'?" Judai asked Asuka later on in the day.

"I mean beat. She fought them like nothing, and gave one of them an excruciatingly painful broken arm," Asuka spoke. "And I think she sprained Jun's arm, also."

"Hold up. She sprained Jun's arm?" Sho asked. Asuka nodded.

"He deserved it for taking her sketchpad and making fun of her," she explained. "He kept calling her 'baby' and 'dear.'"

"That's weird. What else did he call her?" Judai asked.

"Nothing, besides 'Nami.' However, that is part of her name. Most people call her that," Asuka spoke.

"She sounds like a good fighter. I don't want to be caught in an alley with her," Judai teased. Asuka ignored this, and turned to walk back to her seat. It was before the first class of the day started, and they were in Chronos' classroom. She had to take her seat back with her friends, but as she walked back, she noticed a spot in the back of the classroom where many seats were empty. The only one sitting there was Manami, all alone. Why was that?

The class started as usual, but then Chronos, who was an extremely ugly professor there, called Manami down to talk. This surprised everyone, as Chronos had never even acknowledged her existence in his class before. Moreover, if he did, he called her by her last name, "Akatsuki." Manami silently sat up from her desk, and walked down the flight of steps to his desk. Asuka overheard their conversation, as Chronos was talking loudly to her.

"Manami, did you get into a fight with Manjoume Jun this morning outside of the dorm rooms?" Chronos asked. Manami said nothing, but her silver eyes lowered to the ground. "I have three witnesses with injuries who claim that you had beaten them up. You gave Jorime a broken arm, sprained Jun's arm badly, and caused a rib fracture for Krypson. What do you have to say for yourself?"

"Chronos-sama, Jun and his friends were bullying her!" Asuka spoke up suddenly. The whole class turned their attention to her, and she gained an eye contact with Manami, who had that shy, confused look on her face.

"Really, Asuka? What were they doing?" Chronos asked.

"Jun started teasing her, then took her sketchbook away and started to play 'keep-away' with it. After she begged them several times to return it, she decided to get it back herself. It's their fault. They shouldn't have provoked her," Asuka exclaimed.

"Fine, then, I'll have a talk with Jun and his friends about that. I'll let you off with a warning, Nami," Chronos spoke, turning from her and approaching his desk. "You may return to your seat now."

"No," everyone's attention was on Manami now. She had spoken up in a cold, stern voice. Asuka looked at her, and saw her eyes narrowed in a calm, attitude way. "I'm not going to go back to my seat until you hire a plastic surgeon to get rid of that mask."

The whole class laughed at her insult, and Chronos turned to her, fuming and his face red with rage. "What mask!" he bellowed at her.

"Oops, my bad. That's your face," again the class eroded into laughter at her insults.

"Young lady, you are an inch away from gaining a month's detention," Chronos warned.

"So? Give me detention. That's not going to save you from gaining the 'Most Ugly Person to Ever Live' award," Judai fell out of his chair laughing at once. Asuka had to cover her mouth to hide her laughter. Manami held a rather smug smile on her face.

"That's it! A month's detention for you, Akatsuki Manami!" Chronos yelled at her. Manami let out a sigh, and then her body froze slightly, but then she lowered her head slightly, the shadows gone from her eyes once more. She turned and walked back up the flight of stairs to her desk. She was quiet throughout the class, but if Chronos hadn't noticed her before, he did now.

* * *

"That was the best class ever!" Judai yelled in the hallway. It was after Chronos' class, and many of the students were still laughing. "It was the first time I stayed awake throughout the whole thing."

"Mainly because you wanted to see if Manami would insult Chronos more," Sho spoke to him.

"True. Can you believe how she dissed him? That was so hilarious!" Judai cried.

"What is hilarious?" spoke a voice from behind them. Judai and Sho turned to see Misawa Daichi approach them from his class. Judai and Sho told him about the show that went on in Chronos' class. By the time they finished, he had an amused smile on his face.

"Sound like that was an interesting class today," he spoke to them.

"I hope Manami will do something like that tomorrow," Judai spoke as they started walking down the corridor to their next class. As they walked, they saw a flash of black and blue before them, and watched as Manami ran down the hall pass her next class, and they saw she was heading towards her dorm room. They watched her only for a while before walking towards their class.

* * *

After classes that day, the students would originally hang outside in the courtyards to enjoy the rest of the day, or go to their dorms to hang out. Judai and his friends decided to hang out by the docks a couple of hours before dinner. As they walked across the courtyard, they noticed many of the students were outside, enjoying the day. As they came closer to the beach, they noticed someone out in the ocean, swimming. As they drew closer, they saw a girl with a perfectly formed body in a black diving suit, her hair held back in a bun, while her eyes were hidden in the shadows of the water. The girl dived down under the surface, and they watched as she didn't resurface after a few minutes, closer to the shore. They approached the shore, but stepped back as the girl stood on the sand and released her hair from the bun. Her long black hair fell past her shoulders, and her silver eyes sparkled in the afternoon sunlight. She paid no notice to them as she gathered up her stuff and walked towards the Obelisk Blue dorm rooms.

"Was that…Manami?" Judai asked Sho.

"I think so. I didn't know she was a swimmer," Sho spoke.

"I don't think Asuka did, either," Judai exclaimed.

They walked onto the docks to talk and hang out, but the image of Manami swimming pierced their minds.

* * *

That night at dinner, in the Obelisk Blue dormitory, Asuka was talking to her friends when a thought hit her. She decided to ask her friend Jasmine about Manami.

"Hey, Jazz, do you know about that Akatsuki Manami girl?" Asuka asked her.

"No, sorry. All I know is that she's an artist, and a good duelist," Jasmine explained.

"I know she's a good duelist. I watched her at her entrance exam. But do you know anything about her?" Asuka asked.

"No, not really. Oh, I do know she has a dirty little secret," Jasmine spoke cheerfully.

"Are you serious?" Asuka asked.

"Yeah!" this came from Mindy, another one of Asuka's friends, who just jumped into the conversation. "It's a known fact around Obelisk Blue. Jun-kun found out about it, and it's the reason he picks on her."

"What the secret?" Asuka asked.

"Word is that Manami has a major crush on someone at the school. But no one knows who it is," Mindy spoke.

"Really? Is there any clue as to who it is?" Asuka asked.

"Some people suspect that it's someone in a lower dorm than hers. Most people believe it's Jun. That's why he picks on her," Jasmine spoke.

"It's not Jun, I know that for a fact," Asuka spoke.

"How do you know?" Mindy asked her.

"Because Manami kicked his ass this morning. Gave one of his goons a broken arm, and gave him a sprained wrist," Asuka explained. "I saw the whole thing."

"But…hitting someone, and picking on them is a sign of affection. She could like him, and spraining his wrist is just a sign of love," Mindy suggested.

"Not the way she was acting. But I don't know…" Asuka's mind traveled to the picture she saw. It was of a boy she recognized, but she couldn't put her finger on who it was, because she couldn't study the picture well. Could that boy be the one she likes?

Asuka looked around, hoping to see Manami there so she could talk to her, but she didn't see the brunette there at all. "Does anyone know where Manami is?" she asked her friends.

"I went up to her dorm room before coming down to dinner, in hopes of seeing her art, but she wasn't there," Jasmine spoke.

"And Hunter went by Chronos class for detention, and he didn't see Manami there, either," Mindy explained.

"I wonder where she could be." Asuka spoke softly to no one.

* * *

The moon hovered high in the pitch-black sky, the stars covering it like rhinestone glitter on a piece of black paper. The moonlight flowed onto a pathway behind the school where the Ra Yellow dormitory was. A boy walked along the pathway calmly, enjoying the night. As he walked, his dark hair billowed slightly in the cool wind, while his matching dark eyes scanned the sky in an elegant fashion. He stopped briefly to look out at the distant ocean and horizon. He enjoyed the beauty of the night like this, and he knew that art and beauty have nothing to do with equations and theorems. It was just something you enjoy to look at. His Ra Yellow jacket wrapped around him tightly and seemed to glow in the moonlight.

He continued walking down the pathway, but as he did, he closed his eyes slightly to enjoy the night surrounding him. He did not hear the echoing sound of footsteps approaching, the gentle breathing of someone running. And because of this, a sharp pain shot through his body suddenly as he had collided with another person. He fell back onto the ground as well as the other person had. He looked up to see a girl had fallen back onto the ground. Her long black hair fell over her shoulders onto her chest, her silver eyes shy and cold, like snow. It was Akatsuki Manami.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Manami," Daichi stood up and let out a hand to the girl to help her up, but she didn't take it. She stood up by herself and started gathering up her books and papers that had been knocked out of her hand and scattered everywhere. She said nothing to Daichi, but he helped her, anyways. He gathered up a few scattered drawings that had nearly blown away, and had noticed the exact detail drawn in each one. One was of a beautiful landscape of the ocean that you can see from a window in Chronos' classroom. She must've drawn this when she was in detention. Another that he had just picked up was of a view of the academy from the docks. He remembered that Judai and Sho had seen her down at the docks, swimming. She must've drawn this picture when she was there. Before he could look at anymore, he noticed she had gathered up her things, and he kindly returned her work.

"Are you alright?" he asked her. She didn't say anything, but he noticed the bit of shyness in her eyes had caused them to lighten, making her eyes look like a pair of snowballs. She quickly turned and walked the opposite way down the path, and disappeared into the shadows of the night. He then sighed, not knowing why she was so shy and quiet. But as he was beginning to turn, he noticed something at his feet. It was a card.

He picked it up and saw that the image on the card was of two female spirit creatures, one was bright with feathered wings, and the other was dark with demon wings. The two held arms, and were staring into each other's eyes. They looked like the symbol for Gemini, but the way they intertwined each other, they more looked like Yin and Yang. He looked at the name of the card. "Sprite Interchange."

Immediately, he recognized the name. This was a very rare card to come by, only five in the world, and it had an amazing affect. Similar to "Change of Heart" and "Polymerization," this card allowed the user to take control of the opponent's monster, and fuse it with any monster in the user's hand, field, deck, or graveyard. It was also a ritual card to summon a powerful monster named "Sprite Goddess." How did Manami come obtain this rare card?


	3. The Card

Chapter II: The Card

* * *

The next day, Judai had went out before any of his fellow Slifer Red classmates had woken up, and went out onto the beach to look at the sun over the horizon. The morning was warm and the ocean calmly crashed against the shore. Judai approached the shore and looked out at the horizon. He stretched his arms towards the sky, and let out a yawn. He then heard footsteps approaching, and he turned to see a boy approach him, his dark hair billowing, while his matching dark eyes were lowered in a thoughtful expression. His Ra Yellow uniform seemed to glow in the sun as he walked.

"Daichi, what's up?" Judai spoke to the boy.

"I bumped into someone last night, and they left behind this card," immediately Daichi showed him the "Sprite Interchange" card, and at once the expression on Judai's face went from laid-back to surprised and stunned.

"Who would have this card? There's only five in the world!" Judai cried. Daichi didn't answer, but looked out at the ocean. His mind kept wandering to the thought of the drawing he had seen of the ocean from the docks. It was exactly what he was looking at now.

"I came out here to think, and I wasn't expecting you to be out here," Daichi said to Judai.

"Same here. I don't think anyone in the school is awake yet," Judai said.

"Well, there's one other person who's awake, but she's all the way on the other side of the island," Daichi spoke. "Near the electronic industry."

"I'm guessing that's Asuka," Judai spoke.

"No, it's Manami. Asuka told me that every morning before sunrise, Manami would go out of her dorm room and come to the beach to watch the sunrise, and then before dinner, she would sit on the docks to watch the sunset," Daichi said. "Asuka seems a little interested in the girl."

"I would be, too, with the way she insulted Chronos yesterday," Judai said, laughing at the memory of her words. "That's still funny."

"I don't understand where a shy girl like that would come up with such disrespect and insults, and burn him so badly to his face," Daichi spoke. He laughed at the thought of Manami insulting Chronos in his face. He really did miss a show. He looked at the card in his hand, and sighed. Where did she get a card like this?

"So, are you going to return it?" Judai asked. Daichi looked up at him, confused. "The card. You said someone dropped it. Are you going to return it?"

"Yes," Daichi asked. "I have no choice. I can't use a card like this when it's not mine."

"Whoever that belongs to must be a real strong duelist," Judai spoke.

"Yeah…"

* * *

It was an hour before the classes started, Asuka walked down the corridor of the Obelisk Blue girls' dormitory, and she was thinking of what would happen that day for class. She knew that Judai would do something stupid and get in trouble, like always. She knew that the shy Marufuji Sho would back him up and support him. She knew that Misawa Daichi would succeed in all efforts. Manjoume Jun would try to show off and prove that all those who are not in Obelisk Blue were losers and deserved to be expelled. And Manami….

As Asuka passed the girl's dorm room, she heard a voice singing from the inside. She decided to stop and listen.

"_There's a pain that sleeps inside. It sleeps with just one eye. And awakens the moment that you're near…."_

That was Manami. She didn't know that the girl could sing. She wasn't really singing to any music, but her voice was so soft and harmonious that it lullabied and mesmerized Asuka to listen more.

"_Though I try to look away, the pain, it still remains. Only leaving when you're next to me…."_

The girl was good at singing, but Asuka knew she would be caught, so she continued walking down the corridor towards the end of the dorm and decided to head off to the school.

* * *

Classes went on as usual, with sudden murmurs of Manami's act the past day, but nothing out of the ordinary. Judai and Daichi had Physical Education together, and they were rivaling each other well. However, what surprised Judai was that, up in the stands, watching the game, was Manami. She didn't have her sketchbook with her, but she was watching the boys with dreamy eyes and once or twice Judai would gain eye contact from her. The moment before the bell rang to end of the period, she was gone. When Judai went to his next class, he was very surprised to see Manami loitering outside of the classroom, her cheeks flaring red. He approached her, and then saw her eyes were narrowed slightly.

"Hey, Manami, what's up?" She looked up at him, but said nothing. Her cheeks did not decrease in redness, but instead increased. Her face, although was red around her cheeks, was also flushed. She looked sick. "Manami, what's wrong with you?"

"Nothing. I got to go to class," Manami turned and walked away, but her body limped slightly to the side. She disappeared into a classroom down the hall, and then Judai discussed this with Sho later on in the day. When they talked about this, Sho then informed him on something that was quite interesting about Manami.

"Rumor around the school is that she has a huge crush on someone at school, but no one knows who that is," Sho spoke. "From what you say, it sounds like you might be that person."

"How do you know it's me? There were a ton of other boys at the field," Judai spoke.

"But she also showed up at your class. That proves it," Sho spoke.

"No, it doesn't. There are also tons of boys in my class. Some even from the class before. I don't think it's me," he said.

"I don't know about that, but I say keep your eyes open for her," Sho forewarned. Judai thought about this throughout the rest of the day, and inside he did questioned why Manami was around a lot. He hadn't even known her, and yet he was seeing a lot more of her. Could he be the one she liked?

* * *

The sky later on filled with gray clouds quickly, and eventually rain began to fall like gentle tears onto the ground of the earth. Students everywhere in colorful red, blue, and yellow school uniforms dashed for shelter either under trees, or into the buildings of the school. The rain began to fall hard into the night, and at dinner, many of the students were huddled together to warm up. Some even had retired to their dorm rooms to warm up beside a fireplace. Asuka, who had dressed in something warmer for the night, was walking the halls when she noticed one of the dorm rooms was open. She looked into the dark room, and could see across to the window that stretched across the wall like a glass paned wall. She could see the dark skies and clouds, and the rain that fell against the window and ran down to the windowsill. Everything else was hidden in the shadows of the empty room.

Asuka touched the wall and turned on a light. Immediately the room filled with a dim, yet bright gold light. The room was barren and empty besides a large, queen-size bed, a large bureau across the room, and a desktop with a computer. There was nothing else, besides on the walls. This was what surprised Asuka the most. Every inch of the white walls was covered by a sketching or drawing. She entered the room, and her eyes scanned the many drawings of different sceneries, objects, and people. She approached one wall where, pinned in the center with pictures surrounding it elegantly, was a picture of two boys, one older than the other. The youngest looked about ten, his light hair flowing over his almond-shaped eyes, while his smile seemed to shine, although it was drawn. The older boy looked far older than eighteen, twenty, maybe. His cold, hard eyes hidden behind a pair of sunglasses, two rings hanging from his chin, and he wore clothes resembling a hard rock artist. Asuka stared at the picture, noticing that each one of them held a strong resemblance to Manami. The boys were drawn in front of a fountain where water was rushing out of the mouths of two dolphins. This was an amazing picture, and she was amazed to see that Manami had drawn it, because it seemed so realistic. Asuka turned to the desk, and noticed that a small framed picture stood on it, leaning against the computer. Asuka approached it and picked it up to study it.

In the picture were the two boys from the drawing, but different. The older boy's baldhead shined like his cold, hard silver eyes, his clothes still in the same rock artist fashion. The younger boy had black, wild hair, and wandering blue eyes. In between the two of them was Manami, but she looked a few years younger. Who were those two boys?

"Excuse me, what are you doing here?" a voice spoke.

Startled, Asuka gasped and dropped the frame, and it crashed on the floor, shards of glass scattering everywhere while the wooden frame went in a wrong direction. Asuka stared in the doorway where she saw Manami, her silver eyes cold and shy, like snow, but she was staring down sadly at the damaged picture.

"Oh, Manami, I'm so sorry. The door was open, and I wanted to see your art," Asuka spoke, leaning down to pick up the glass and picture. Manami approached her and helped pick up the rest of the shards. While she did this, Asuka picked up the photograph and looked at it. She then looked around the room at all the different drawings, and noticed that some of them had these two boys in them.

"Manami, who are these two boys?" Asuka spoke.

"They're my brothers," Manami spoke softly, yet coldly.

"How come they don't come here?" Asuka spoke. Manami didn't answer, she kept her head low and continued picking up the shards of glass into her hands, as a shard scraped against her palm, she let out a hiss of pain as flesh was opened on her wrist and crimson tears fell from the wound. Asuka saw this and grabbed her wrist.

"Manami, you're bleeding," she said. She quickly snatched her wrist away and spoke softly, yet coldly to her.

"I'm fine, Asuka. Please, leave," she beckoned to the door. Asuka obeyed and left the room, leaving the girl there to pick up the rest of the glass. Asuka closed the door behind her, and leaned against it, wondering why Manami didn't answer her question, and as to why those boys were never mentioned before. In fact, all of Manami's personality, past, and history seemed to be a complete mystery. She didn't talk to anyone; she didn't really have any friends at the school. Therefore, Asuka wanted to know as much as she could. Moreover, she knew she would find out as much as she could about the girl.

* * *

The night passed with thunderous sounds of the rain and booming explosions of lightning and thunder in the sky. The morning was gray, yet rain-free, and the school grounds were soaked and damp with the fallen water from the sky. The students at the Duel Academy were running across the grounds like rats in a maze, trying to avoid the soaked areas on the school. Judai crossed on the sidewalk connecting the dormitories to the classroom, trying to cover his head with both arms in the misty, soft rain that was falling. As he ran, he saw several wandering Ra yellow duelists running into the mucky and soaked grass, splashing each other with the dirt. It was definitely not something to do early in the morning before classes. As he reached the building where all the classrooms, he noticed someone standing on the stairs, staring up dreamily at the dark sky. Her long, silky black hair billowed in the cool, soft wind, while her silver, sparkling, cold eyes were blank and empty, yet light.

"Manami, what are you staring at?" Judai asked. This snapped Manami out of her stare, and she looked at him in a confused way.

"Huh? Oh, I was just watching the rain," Manami spoke.

"Is there something interesting about the rain?" Judai asked.

"Oh, um…me and my father used to watch the rain a lot. We used to sit out on the front porch of his home…and just watch…." She said this almost mindlessly, yet dreamily. As if remembering something wonderful as she spoke this. Judai was surprised to hear something about her father, because, from what he remembered, she didn't say anything about her family in the month that she's been there. This brought up a discussion that Judai had with Sho the other night about Manami, and he was tempted to ask it.

"Hey, Manami, can I ask you something real quick?" he looked at her, but she looked down at her wrist.

"Shoot," she spoke calmly and softly.

"Alright. Um…some people are saying that you like someone-" Judai started off, but Manami cut him off.

"No, Judai. That was 'shoot' as in 'shoot, I'm late for my meeting with the commissioner.' I'll see you later, Judai!" she called as she ran into the building, disappearing in a flash of blue. A few moments later, Judai heard a sarcastic chuckle come from behind him. He turned to see Misawa Daichi approach him with a satisfied grin on his face.

"Well, that was about as entertaining as doing pre-Algebra," he teased Judai. "You were about to ask her if she liked you, huh?"

"Is it that obvious?" Judai asked.

"Sort of. It looked like you were about to make a move on her. Is it because you are suspicious of who the mystery guy is?" Daichi asked.

"What mystery guy?" Judai asked.

"Come now, Judai, don't play coy with me. Everyone knows there's someone special at the academy that Manami likes. Problem is, not one soul knows who it is. So, you want to find out if it's you, huh?" Daichi asked.

"Maybe. What about you? Why are you so interested?" Judai asked him.

"Because every boy in Ra yellow has been fighting over whether or not they're the one. So, because she's in my math class, they're asking me to find out who it is," Daichi explained.

"Could you? It's driving me insane because Sho is insisting that it's me. While Asuka is suspicious that it may be Ryo, and then there's Jun, who bullies her because he believes it's him," Judai explained.

"I'll try. I have one of her cards, so I may be able to find out," Daichi spoke. "Oh, by the way, you do know she just lied to you, right?"

"Really?" Judai asked.

"Yes. She said she was late for a meeting with the commissioner, when everyone knows that he is out because of he had fallen ill with bronchitis," Daichi explained to her.

"Then, why is she so nervous?" Judai spoke. The two boys exchanged looks before running into the building to follow her. They eventually tracked her in the commissioner's office where Chronos, Manami, and another man were. The double doors were open ajar, so the boys peeked through into the room where they saw Chronos leaning against the wall, watching Manami, who was sitting in a chair in front of the commissioner's desk, and the other man, who was sitting in the commissioner's chair behind the desk. The man had cold, piercing dark eyes and sleeked, thinning, dark hair. He wore a black suit, and was leaning back in the chair with his fingers laced together in a more professional way. He looked at Manami with a serious glare, and then smiled.

"My dear Manami, surely what Chronos has been saying has to be wrong," the man spoke in a cold voice, but with an Italian accent.

"It is not, Abruzzi! Akatsuki has shown such disrespect for me in my class that I want her out of this school!" Chronos yelled.

"Did I say you could speak, Chronos!" the man spoke coldly and sternly, glaring at Chronos with such an icy glare that Judai was sure that he was about to strike him. Chronos recoiled in fear and silenced himself. Then the man turned to Manami.

"Yes, John, sir, it is," Manami spoke emotionlessly. The man reached over and grasped her chin in his palm.

"Now, Manami, we sent here to keep you safe. If you don't learn to respect this school, and their staff, you may not be safe anymore, capice?" the man, Abruzzi, scolded to her.

"Yes, sir," Manami spoke. "But…sir, Chronos is nothing but a slime ball trying to get most of the bad students in the academy expelled, like Judai Yuki!"

"I understand that, but you are not a bad student. You are an excellent student, and if you want to stay this way, you are to respect all staff at the school…even if they are slime balls," Abruzzi spoke with a sly smile. Manami giggled and waited for him to stand up before standing up herself. She walked around the desk and embraced him in a friendly way.

"Thanks, Uncle John," she spoke softly. She then looked up to place a kiss on his cheek, and then placed one on the other. Where has Judai seen that before? He knew it was from an old movie.

"Forget about it, Manami. Just remember, you want to stay at this school to be safe, and if you do not treat the staff with respect, you will not be safe," Abruzzi forewarned once more.

"I understand, sir. I'll respect all teachers…and try to respect the slime ball." Abruzzi let out a hearty laugh for the girl, and then turned to the door without so much as a word to Chronos.

"Now, I have to go 'cause I got a meeting with your father in about three hours," Abruzzi spoke, opening the door, and Judai and Daichi dashed down the hall as quickly as they could without being noticed.

* * *

Classes went on as usual without any notice or suspicion or arousing. By the time for the last class of the day, however, surprise came around with Manami once more. It was during math class, which, surprisingly, was 12th grade calculus, something Daichi was rather impressive in. He, like he had said before, was in the same class with Manami, but before had never really realized this until a few days ago when a few of his fellow Ra yellow classmates came up to him to find out about her secretive crush. What he really wanted to do, though, was to return the card she had dropped when they had bumped into each other the other night. However, he never truly got the chance because she was always going somewhere, doing something, or talking to someone before he got the chance to be alone. Today, he hoped, he would have the chance to talk to her.

The professor for this particular math class was a regular Japanese man with sleeked black hair, almond-shaped brown eyes that were framed by square glasses and a pale face. He wore a white suit before the class, mainly because he found this to be the professional look besides the fact that he was not a member of any dormitory. As he wrote on the board an equation and theorems, this gave Daichi the perfect opportunity to look up and see Manami sitting in the row behind him, almost directly behind him, but she paid no notice to him. In fact, she wasn't even paying much notice to the class at all. She was busy drawing in her sketchbook again. Daichi found this an excellent time to gain her attention, especially while the other students were busy and the professor wasn't calling on him to answer a question.

He stretched his arms up, and "accidentally" knocked Manami's pencil out of her hand. She looked down at him as she tried to pick it up off the floor, and once he saw her eyes come up over the desk once more, he spoke.

"Sorry, I'm tired and bored in this class," Daichi spoke, trying to make conversation with her.

"I understand. I can't believe he's going over the exact same theorems, correlates, and postulates that I already know," she groaned with exasperation. He smiled, amazed that she knew so much about math.

"When did you study?" he asked her.

"Back in the fifth grade. My math back then was so easy, I could name all multiples of two while standing on my head, literally," Manami spoke. Daichi laughed. Although most people wouldn't understand an insult in math, he did, and what she had just said was a burn to her fifth grade mathematics.

"How old are you?" Daichi asked. This had come out of nowhere, and he hadn't even thought of it. It just seemed to come to his lips naturally.

"Sixteen," Manami answered blankly.

"And you're a freshman? What happened?" Daichi spoke.

"Switched schools a lot," Manami spoke again, blankly, and her eyes seemed to sparkle with the light streaming in the room. He liked that about her eyes. They were like tables continuously turning for eternal.

"Akatsuki, perhaps you would like to solve this problem!" the professor's loud, booming voice pulled the two of them out of the conversation, and the surprised girl looked up at him, her eyes narrowed in boredom, but her lips were still and firm. The professor then recited a problem in her direction. "Given a quadratic integer polynomial x to the power of two added to variable ax and the slope of b, consider the number such polynomials that are factorable over the integers for variable A and variable B taken from some set of integers S to the union Z."

The whole class had turned their attention to Manami, who was staring blankly at the professor, then looked at Daichi, then she sat up and closed her eyes calmly and softly. Just as Daichi was starting to conclude that she didn't know the answer, she spoke calmly and gently, but loud enough for the professor and the whole class to hear her.

"X to the power of 2 plus 2 and the variable of x and one equals x plus one to the power of two with a parenthesis surrounding both ends. X to the power of two plus three and the X plus 2 equals x plus added to one multiplied by the equation of x added to two—but that's only if you factor correctly, of course," the girl spoke calmly. "And that's only half of my answer. Is that good enough for you, professor?"

The whole class was left speechless, and it took the professor several moments of staring dumbly at her before clearing his throat and speaking. "Yes, very good, Manami." Manami eyes Daichi in a bored way, yet her lips formed a satisfied smile, as if she knew that was going to happen. Daichi was far more surprised that she knew so much about math and was well educated. This was very impressive, even when he didn't know the girl. Nevertheless, before he could say anything to the girl, a boy had stepped into the classroom and had approached the professor. Manami did not notice this, like the other students, because she had returned to her drawing on her desk.

The boy was tall and dressed in Obelisk Blue uniforms. His wild, dark, navy hair framed his lightface while his cold, stern dark eyes found the professor with an intense, focused stare. This was Marufuji Sho's older brother, Marufuji Ryo. He was one of the most popular boys in the school, mainly because he was very handsome and charming, but also an excellent student and duelist. He was, in fact, the known prodigy of the school. However, he held this cold, cool, aloof demeanor about him, and this made him even more attractive. He handed the mathematics professor a slip of paper that was folded, and, after receiving it, the professor nodded coldly and turned to the blackboard to jot down another equation.

Ryo moved towards the stairs and started climbing them. As he passed Daichi's desk, they exchanged known looks, silent, cold, yet knowing. Then Ryo stopped at Manami's desk, and, after giving Daichi another knowing look, he approached her from behind. She didn't notice him, which was amazing many of the students that were watching him. Because of the rumors spreading around the school, many students suspected Ryo to have been the mystery boy that Manami liked, but, as it is proven, no one knows the truth.

Ryo leaned over her shoulder, real close, and looked at her drawing for a few brief moments before rolling his dark eyes and whispered darkly into her ear. "What're you doing?"

"AAAH!" Manami cried in the class, literally jumping in her seat and hitting Ryo hard in the chest, sending him back into the next desk. This drew a lot more attention to them. "DON'T DO THAT, RYO!"

"Sorry," Ryo spoke, surprised he had startled the girl so much. "I thought you knew I was there."

"Well, I didn't, okay?" she snapped at him, and turned back to her drawing. She was breathing hard. Why did she get so frightened by him? Daichi was curious about this as he watched them.

"Chronos wants you," Ryo told the girl. She turned to him, frustration burning in her eyes.

"Can't this wait? This is math!" she barked at him softly.

"Nope. He says he needs to take your stuff with you, because something just came up," Ryo explained. The girl groaned as she gathered up her sketchpad and bag, and as she walked alongside Ryo out of the room, Daichi heard her mutter under her breath as she passed by.

"Damn it, what's wrong now?"

* * *

FD: Alright, I'm done now for this second chapter. I'm so tired, and sorry I haven't updated in awhile. I've been busy. For those who have reviewed, it is very much appreciated, and I hope you'll stay with the story to the end. Peace! 


	4. An Artist's Touch

Chapter III: An Artist's Touch

* * *

After classes that day, Misawa Daichi was standing outside of the math class that he was in, hoping to see Akatsuki Manami to walk by and gain her attention. He really wanted to return her card that she had dropped one night, but he had never got the chance to do so. He felt it was wrong to have someone else's card without their knowledge. He wondered if she even realized she was missing a card. However, as he waited, he saw no sign of Manami coming. So he gathered up his stuff and walked down the hall away from the classrooms. As he exit the school, he saw Manami at once, gathered by a group of boys who were gaping at her. She looked stunned that so many people were around her, and Daichi knew this made her uncomfortable.

"So, Manami, who do you like? Is it me?" this came from a familiar Ra yellow sophomore Daichi had seen around.

"No, it's not him! It's me!" this was from a Slifer junior.

"No, it's me! I know you like me, Manami!" an Obelisk Blue senior

"It's me!"

"No way, it's me!"

"Hi, Manami, babe!"

"'Babe?' What the hell!"

"Manami!"

"Manami…"

She turned at once her arm was grabbed, and saw Daichi standing beside her, concern in his eyes. He noticed her cheeks were ablaze from all the attention. She looked away, but he pulled her out of the group and away. But at once, one of the boys and jumped out and encircled them. He glared hungrily at Manami, and Daichi immediately recognized this Ra yellow senior as Junado Shiyo. He then licked his lips seductively at Manami.

"So, Nami, babe, how 'bout we ditch these losers, and go some place more…private?" he asked her seductively. And he had done something that Daichi was furious about afterwards. He had dared to reach over to the girl and stroke her lips with one finger, as if she was a toy to him. Daichi glared at him, but before he could do anything, several hands from behind had grabbed him and held him back. One had his arm twisted behind him painfully. He groaned in pain, but because of their hold on him, he was paralyzed to help Manami out.

Shiyo approached the girl and his hand traveled somewhere on her body he had no right at all to touch. At first her face became scarlet, and then her shadowed, silver eyes narrowed in rage and anger, and she swiped her hand across his face so hard that, not only did the loud SMACK echo in the school grounds, but he fell back hard into the ground, covering a side of his face where blood was gently pouring through. He looked up at Manami, and Daichi at once saw strickened fear reflect in his eyes. Daichi then looked at Manami, and saw her silver eyes had become starling silver, and they were glaring demonically at Shiyo.

"You touch me again, you little worm, I'll make sure you and your organs are sent off of this island in jars!" she snapped at him, her voice low, threatening, and demonically dark. The boy looked in fear at her, and immediately stood up and ran away towards the beach ahead. She then turned to the group of boys holding Daichi back, and her glare was so icy and piercing that the boys screamed and ran off. Daichi fell to his knees, and looked up at Manami, who was looking down at him in a suspicious way. Then she grabbed his arm forcefully and pulled him up onto his feet.

"You okay?" she asked him darkly.

"Yes. That was awesome, Manami," he spoke to her, massaging his arm that had been turned behind him. He looked at her, and noticed there was a dazed look within them, but then this gaze vanished to the familiar, light-filled gaze she had. Daichi noticed this, and then spoke without thinking.

"Are you okay?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine," she said.

"It must get really tiring," Daichi spoke to her in a calm, gentle way.

"What?" she questioned him again.

"Having all this attention from the boys. It must get tiring. Surely the one you like is one of them." This came out all too fast that he didn't even think of the consequences of saying it. Manami looked up at him, her face blazing red, and then she looked away shyly.

"No, he's not one of them," she spoke again.

"Oh…okay. Do you know if he likes you?" They had begun walking together over the grounds, and so far, Daichi was the one talking to her. Every once in awhile, her head would turn and she would look at into the ocean. However, some of the questions he asked her she did not answer. This one was one of them. However, as they walked, Daichi then began to realize where they were heading. Towards the Obelisk Blue dormitories. He soon found a perfect opportunity to perform the task that had been on his mind for so long now.

He reached into his pocket and felt the card that had been left behind a few nights ago. He quickly pulled it out, and shown it to her. At once, her eyes sparkled in the sunlight with recognition and familiarity. She took it, and then looked up at him confused.

"Where did you find this?" she asked him.

"That night we bumped into each other. I've been trying to return it for awhile now," he confessed. She was silent for a moment, and he heard her breathing quiver for some strange reason. "Is it that special to you?"

"Yes," she spoke calmly and sternly, but he heard the tremble in her voice. She was upset, and he wondered if he could help. But then he wondered if this was one of those female mood-swings where trying to help only made it worse? He didn't know, and inside, he was really troubled by it. But at that moment, he heard her mutter something under her breath, it was faint, but he heard it.

"Daughter to father, daughter to father…I am broken, but I am hoping…." She had muttered this so softly that he could barely hear it, but it was like she was singing it to no one. Daichi looked at her, and saw her eyes shimmer with a light unlike any other. It was like a watery light had filled her eyes and seeping through from her soul. Before he could even obtain the chance to comfort her, she started running.

Daichi watched as she ran ahead on the path and disappeared into the brilliantly shining Obelisk Blue dormitory. Her blue jacket seemed to reflect off the light as she vanished into the sunlight, and as Daichi stood there, her words traveled and repeated in his mind. _"Daughter to father, daughter to father…I am broken, but I am hoping…."_ Why would she say something like that? He immediately turned on the path and headed for the Ra Yellow dormitories, those words pierced in his mind as he thought of them all night.

* * *

That night, the words seemed to be all that was on Misawa Daichi's mind. As he tossed and turned throughout the night, Manami's voice muttering those words, he only came to one conclusion….Manami was having problems with her father. So, why was the card, "Sprite Interchange," involved? What if it was a gift from her father? She said it was special to her. Maybe her father was no longer alive, and she cherished it. Or….The sudden memory of the man, Abruzzi, came to mind. Who was he? How did he know Manami? And…what did he mean by "safety"? Was Manami in danger?

As Daichi laid there in bed, his mind wondering from thoughts of Manami to the card to the words she spoke, he began to realize that he was being silly. He was thinking of the worst possible things to happen to her. Why was he so concern with her in the first place? Just a few days ago, he hardly even knew she existed. But she had caused a lot of conflict at the academy with the rumors of her crush. No one on the school grounds even knew a hint of who it was. All they knew was that he was a great duelist, but that could be anyone from Marufuji Sho to his older brother in Obelisk Blue, Ryo. In fact, he did notice some common grounds that Ryo and Manami shared when Ryo invaded their math class to take her away. It was like they were friends. But…the only person that Daichi had even suspected to be Ryo's friend was Asuka. Could he have been wrong about that? He turned onto his side and looked out towards the opposite wall, his mind continueosly wandering to Manami, while his eyes scanned the equations and theorems that he had written across them. Not one inch of the wall was blank from ink or pencil marks.

"_X to the power of 2 plus 2 and the variable of x and one equals x plus one to the power of two with a parenthesis surrounding both ends. X to the power of two plus three and the X plus 2 equals x plus added to one multiplied by the equation of x added to two—but that's only if you factor correctly, of course…." _

He blinked at the darkness, realizing that he had been thinking about Manami almost empty-mindedly. He gently sighed. Why was he so distracted by the thought of her? Was it because he was being stressed by his fellow Ra Yellow male students on asking her whom she was interested in? Was it because she had said something that concerned him? Was it for the fact she owned a powerful and rare card? Or was it because there was so much mystery surrounding her?

Whatever the reason was, he was deeply frustrated by it, and he had to think of something else quickly. Everything he thought of, though, quickly changed to Manami. Whether it would be of equations and math, which would lead to the equation Manami had answered so perfectly in class, or to dueling, which would lead to the "Sprite Interchange" card she owned, or the beauty and natural wonders of the island, which would lead to the fact of Manami's talent of art. He had to think of something else and fast, but it became hard. He eventually allowed his mind to wander into nothing, allowing him to at last fall into subconscious slumber.

* * *

The sunlight seemed to fall onto the grounds like liquid gold, warm and soothing to the sudden touch it left. Even those who slept late on the weekends awoke to find the morning peaceful and relaxing. All but one, that is. All Saturday morning, not one person saw Manami leave her dormitory room, not even Asuka, who always walked by, hoping to start a conversation with the girl. However, although she didn't leave her room, this did not mean she was not there. A few times Asuka passed her room, she would hear the young girl singing to herself in a low tone, but soft and gentle, like an angels' choir.

Around noon, though, the young girl had decidedly left her room to wander onto the grounds to find a source of a beauty on the island. With a sketchpad held over her chest in a secretive way, she crossed the grass surrounding the Obelisk Blue dormitory and set off down the path towards the forest behind the school. Many students during the weekends, especially on bright and glorious weekends like this, mostly went down to the beach to enjoy the day and the sun. In the distant horizon, she could see several students had taken the liberty to surf out on the waves like as if they were in Hawaii. As she walked towards the trees, her long, black, silky hair seemed to billow softly in the wind that soon surrounded her, and her gray eyes seemed to sparkle in the dark shadows cast by the trees.

She quickly moved to the center of the woods where the trees parted to form a rather large and imperfect circle. She sat in the center of the circle, and looked out into the shadows that danced across the leaves and the canopy of the trees. Her lips parted and her eyes closed in concentration, and as she sat there, legs folded beneath her, sketchpad placed on her lap, her lead pencil placed between her index and middle finger professionally, she felt the wind rise above her, covering her head like a blanket of a cool force. Her head tilted back in pleasure, and at once she thought of the boy who had been on her mind the whole while she had been at the academy.

She imagined him standing upon the shores of the beach during a beautiful sunset, smiling charmingly at her. She felt her face flow red when she imagined herself running out to him, arms wide open. She imagined the warmth of his body embracing her, the comfort of his touch on her back as he held her close. She imagined the soft, gentle words that would escape his lips as he spoke to her lovingly. She imagined the intense, strong hold his eyes would have when he looked at her. Just to be in his presence would leave her scarlet and on her knees in embarrassment. She didn't deserve to even know who he was. But every night, she thought of him and saw him in her dreams. It was every night that his name was on her lips when she awoke from a dream. She would give anything for him to pay notice to her….

* * *

"Wow! This is a beautiful day!" Judai exclaimed to the sky as he reached and stretched to the azure-colored sky and white, large clouds that floated through the sunlight. Beside him was Sho, who was smiling casually in agreement. Maeda Hayato smiled in agreement, also, but was looking out at the horizon. The three of them were standing on the grass before the Osiris Red dormitories, enjoying the day. Judai rocked on his feet until at last he fell back onto his lower back and was sitting on the grass. Sho eventually joined him, and then Hayato.

"I haven't seen a day like this since Chronos was forced to let us off by the chancellor to enjoy it," Hayato confessed.

"Yeah. I can't believe how many people are on the beach today! Everyone's outside, enjoying the sun, and having fun!" Sho spoke, raising his arms in excitement.

"Yes, I think he's right."

The three boys looked up to see Misawa Daichi approach them, a very satisfied smile upon his face. He smiled at them, and then looked out at the horizon, his yellow jacket shining like gold in the sunlight. Judai was surprised that even the Osiris Red jackets seemed to look dull compared to the Ra jackets, although they looked a bright crimson today.

"Hey, Daichi, what's up? Did you find out anything from Manami yesterday?" Judai asked him. Daichi frowned at him, signifying his answer, and the smile quickly vanished from Judai's face. He was curious now about whom the mystery man was. The only way he knew he was going to find out was if he dueled her, but he didn't even know how strong she was. For all he knew, he could embarrass a sweet and shy girl who knew nothing of dueling.

"But most of that reason is my fault, Judai," Daichi confessed to him. "I never even asked her. I was too busy gawking at how she had beaten those bullies trying to hurt her."

"Hold up, she beat up a group of bullies again?" Sho asked. Daichi nodded.

"A senior in Ra named Junado Shiyo. He was getting fresh with her, and she completely turned personalities, slapping him so hard across the face that he was scared enough to run off like a mouse," Daichi explained. "That also scared the others."

"That sounds like an interesting fight," Judai spoke with a smile.

"Yeah, it was. But she didn't seem to pleased about herself fighting," Daichi explained.

Judai looked from him towards the horizon, imagining a shy and sincere girl like Manami fighting a gang of bully-seniors, and winning. It was pretty amusing to think about, but this thought vanished quickly when he saw the distracted and distant look in Daichi's eyes. He was staring out into the ocean, his dark eyes seemed to penetrate everything. Judai even found it difficult to lie to Daichi, not only because they're friends, but because those eyes seem to know the truth without him speaking. It gave him a cool, aloof appearance beneath his stern demeanor. As Judai sat there with his friends, he started to find himself thinking about Manami's eyes.

Beautiful, they were, but he also noticed that they change. He remembered when he first met her, her eyes were cold, and light, like the new fallen snow, and seemed to sparkle in the sunlight. It was like she was always smiling in a dreamy way in her eyes. But then they would suddenly change from soft, cold, light snow-silver to dark. Shadows would spin in her eyes, and they seemed to penetrate everything, like Daichi's, when this happens. When her eyes were like this, it was like she was looking through them, and into another person's soul. He hated to say it, but when her eyes darkened, they resembled starling silver, the bands of wedding rings.

Judai let his mind wander for a few moments of silence when he suddenly remembered something. Something important, something that would change his day for the better. As this thought came up, he jumped up and cried out in excitement.

"TODAY IS SANDWICH DAY!"

Startled by Judai's random actions, Daichi stepped back as the other two stood up as well, and started to race away down the hill. They disappeared into the sunlight, and Daichi smiled in relief. Those three were always so laid-back and calm even in a serious situation. He enjoyed that about Judai, one reason why they were friends.

* * *

Noon came and by so quickly that it startled most people. Daichi hung out around the Ra Yellow dormitories, and as he did, he saw Judai, Sho, and Hayato exit the cafeteria, all three had displeased looks on their faces. From the grass before the dormitories where he sat, Daichi called out to his friends.

"Hey, any luck?" he asked. Judai, who had his head bowed in disappointment, answered.

"No, the egg-whiches were already taken!" he whimpered.

"Ha! Better luck next time, eh?" he spoke, trying to hide his laugh. It was the first time since someone had taken the Egg sandwich before Judai, and this amused Daichi. As he sat there on the grass, he noticed that he had to go find lunch soon, also. He felt a tight knot in his stomach, signifying that he was famished, but he couldn't move from the spot. He was lost in his thoughts, and then, as what felt like an hour passed, something surprised him.

Right in his face popped a small bag of blue foil, the large initials of the Duel Academy, D.A., spread across the center. Daichi pulled away slightly to see that it was one of the sandwiches that were served in the cafeteria that Judai and his friends had just left. He looked up to see who was holding it out to him, and was surprised to see the familiar, long black hair, and sparkling, cold silver eyes. Manami. Daichi immediately accepted the meal, and then Manami took a seat next to him on the grass. He noticed that her long hair was held back in a somewhat ponytail by a large clip with dark flowers on it. Because of her hair being pulled back, he could now see that, although her face was slightly pale and fare, she also held this slight glow about her, especially whenever she smiled. Her eyebrows were perfectly shaped along the frame of her eyes, her cheeks were naturally red, and her full lips seemed to be formed into a perfect, yet shy smile.

"Hey, what's with the new hair-style?" Daichi asked, not showing gratitude for her giving him lunch.

"I just wanted to try something new. I don't like having my hair up," she spoke to him. Her voice was still gentle and soft.

They sat there together for a few moments of silence, until Daichi finally opened the package and bit into what was unmistakably delicious egg. It just felt so warm and delicious in his mouth. So she was the one who took it. As he continued to eat into it, she spoke and startled him, causing him to choke rather painfully.

"I wanted to thank you."

He choked, and then regained the ability to talk, but nothing came out. He instead looked at her, and saw that she was staring blankly at the horizon, her hair moving slightly in the gentle, low wind. She looked like a painting, or drawing, of her own. A girl just looking out at the ocean, lost in thought. "Huh?" That was all that came out of his mouth.

"You returned my card, which was a rare and powerful card. Not very many people would have done that."

"It's no problem," Daichi spoke to her.

"But it is. If any other guy found that card, they would either keep it and claim it was theirs, or they would have used it to take advantage of me. You're a real gentleman, Daichi," her eyes were so distant, but her smile was warm and comforting as she turned to him. Daichi returned the smile.

"Thank you."

They sat there together, and then Daichi finished his sandwich. Around the time he finished, he noticed Manami was suddenly pulling out her sketchpad and a lavender led pencil. She started sketching a landscape of the scenery before them, and Daichi watched as she did so. He was amazed by her art and talent, and it took her an amount of thirty minutes to fully capture the area into a perfect and beautiful sketching. It was amazing, and then he wondered why she was so shy around people when everyone would love the artworks she does.

"That's beautiful." This startled her slightly, but she recovered and smiled at him.

"You like it?" she asked shyly to him. "I've never really had anyone look at any of my drawings, unless they take them from me."

"Well, it's a beautiful sketching, but just a few problems." Daichi couldn't help but reach over her shoulder and take the pencil straight out of her hand. Then he started to mark the areas she had substandard. "The waves don't really seem to be moving in the portrait, and there are no clouds in the sky. You see right there—" (he pointed towards the sky with the pencil) "—there are three right there. And then…oh, the length of the hill isn't right. Try making it more metrical. You see, here—" (he pointed to the foot of the hill from where they sat) "—it's two meters down, so try to shorten the length by centimeters to the drawing. Or decimeters. It would make it look more accurate and realistic."

He noticed the strange and bizarre look in her eyes, and he wondered if he had offended her by adding his opinion. He backed away, and felt a slight intensity about her as he sat there, thinking of what to say next. It just came to him like water in a river.

"Um…I hope I didn't offend you by suggesting that to you," he said. "I can understand you not accepting some bit of advice."

Her smile surprised him even more than he thought, and her eyes just seemed to light up.

"I'm not offended, Daichi. I actually enjoy receiving—what did you call it?—'advice.' To be precise, what you just gave me is called constructive criticism, and I don't mind it. I always accept help and information from others. It helps me improve in my work and skills."(A/N: That goes for me as well.) Manami's eyes seemed to bright up in a pleasant way as she explained this to him, and he smiled in relief. A part of him was starting to like this girl.

"Hey, Manami, I'm really sorry if by asking this question, I seem a bit…inquisitive, but there are quite a few rumors going around the school about you, and…I just want to know the truth. Who is it that you like?" Daichi asked her. He could feel his cheekbones grow hot and tried to hold off the blush. Her smile was sly and curious.

"Why are you so interested, Misawa Daichi?" she asked him quite blankly.

He didn't answer, but just looked at her, trying to find a way to explain it to her. Then he heard her let out a soft, hidden giggle.

"Is it because most of the boys in your Ra Yellow dormitory questioning you to pump me for information?" her smile was bright now. He smiled, and nodded in confession.

"Yes. And to be honest, it's getting quite annoying. Every night, before I go to dinner, or to bed, they're always running up to me, asking whether or not I have new things to tell them," Daichi explained. Manami started giggling even more, and before he knew it, the two of them were laughing in amusement. He had never laughed like that with a girl before. Normally, when he was laughing with a girl, he would wonder if he was offending them, or they were offending him. But as they laughed, it was like they were friends, enjoying a hilarious joke that they shared.

As they quieted down, Daichi began to realize how much time must've been wasted, and that he had to meet up with his friends in a few minutes. He had to get the information out of her soon.

"So, are you going to tell me?" he leaned a little closer almost instinctively, feeling the intensity between them loosen.

"No, I can't," this surprised him, but he smiled. "If I told you, eventually everyone will know, and I don't want anyone to know. I'm not saying you'll tell everyone, but someone can overhear, and then spread it. I've learned not to say anything personal or confidential out in public, or to anyone, for that matter."

This girl was really intelligent, and clever. She knew the facts of some situations better than anyone. It was amazing, and Daichi was quite impressed by that.

"I agree, and I won't bug you about this anymore," he confided to her, and she smiled at him in a gratitude way. She stood up and looked at him in rather amazing, pleased way.

"I have to go, but I'll see you later, okay, Daichi. It was nice talking to you!" she waved goodbye as she walked away down towards the school, and Daichi watched her, part of him wishing she wouldn't leave. Why was that?

* * *

FD: Hey, guys, I normally do this after each chapter, but haven't done it yet for this one, so just as a heads up. "FD" is me, the author of this fanfic, the girl who thought up Manami, and the girl who's going to be in trouble in the next five minutes for being on the internet. Anyway, just hope you enjoy my fic, and if you have any problems or comments, please, either message me or review to me about them. I accept any reviews or comments, and constructive criticism. However, like most people, I hate flames, so, please, don't flame me. Anyways, peace! 


	5. Fine Again

Chapter IV: Fine Again

* * *

"_He was a boy, she was a girl. Can I make it any more obvious? He was a punk, she did ballet. What more can I say? He wanted her, she'd never tell. Secretly she wanted him as well. All of her friends stuck up their nose. They had a problem with his baggy clothes…."_ In the early morning a few days later, she could find herself standing before her mirror of her bureau, singing into her brush a song many people knew well. On her face, a bright smile shined in the flooding sunlight that came into her bedroom. Her black hair seemed to sway around her face as she sang and danced, while her eyes kept wandering outside into the school grounds where she prayed he would wait for her. She didn't know whether he was down there in the grounds, she knew he wasn't "waiting" for her, but she prayed inside he would still be there when she finished getting dressed and ready.

Placing her brush down onto the bureau, she immediately grabbed her bright blue blazer and snapped it on over her black high-neck top, which was mostly covered by the blazer. Her navy blue skirt seemed to fit perfectly over her thighs, and she kept looking at herself in the mirror. She knew she had to do something with her hair, just to make herself look nice. She grabbed the hair clip off the shelf, pulled back her bangs behind her head, and clamped them together with the clip. Then she looked at herself once more and quickly rummaged through her drawers. She finally pulled out a small tube of mascara and another small tube of bright pink lip-gloss. As she applied the make-up to her face, she kept smiling excitedly. Her body shook with excitement as she quickly placed the make-up on, then replaced them back in her drawers, quickly grabbed her sketchpad, pencil, tucking them under her arm, and ran out of her room, slamming the door behind her.

As she ran down the hall, she raced out of the Obelisk Blue dormitory, and onto the grounds, looking around, hoping to see him and talk to him, but her smile quickly vanished when she realized that he wasn't there. There was no one outside. She was alone, with her hair made nicely upon her head, her lips fully glossed, shining in the sunlight, her silver eyes falling sadly onto the grass, and she let out a disappointed sigh as she crossed across the grounds towards the woods once more.

* * *

The cool wind swept through his light brown hair, and he stared out into the ocean with his energetic, brown eyes. His bright red blazer just burned in the sunlight, and he leaned against the railing of his dormitory, just smiling happily at the beach. The day was so clear, so bright, just a perfect day. Real shame that they had classes today. As he stared at the beach, he heard echoing, thudding footsteps in the distance. He looked up to see a girl in a bright blue blazer run across the grass, her navy blue skirt billowing around her legs like a curtain on a window. Her long black hair billowed like a cape, and he noticed that her bangs were being held back by a hair clip with black flowers along it. He also noticed her eyelashes were lengthened above her silver eyes, and her full lips were glossed with a pink, shining liquid. Manami….

"Hey, Manami, what's up?" he called from the balcony.

She stopped abruptly in her tracks, and stared at him from the distance. She then smiled and ran towards him. "Hello, Yuki Judai," she spoke softly to him.

He noticed how dressed up she was, and then couldn't help but ask about that.

"Who're you seeing?" he blurted to her. Her face fell red, and she bowed her head in embarrassment.

"I was hoping to see him this morning. Be able to talk to him…," she muttered low and softly, her voice trembling slightly from disappointment.

"Aw! Maybe next time," Judai spoke cheerfully to her. She smiled happily at him, and then it was her turn to speak.

"Who're you waiting for?" she asked.

"For Hayato and Sho to wake up. Can't believe I woke up so early, but I'm glad I did," Judai spoke, staring out at the ocean. "I've never seen it like this…so early."

"Yeah, isn't it beautiful?" Manami spoke to him, taking a quick glance at the morning, sparkling ocean.

Judai was surprised to see her eyes sparkle with such a cold beauty. Why were her eyes so empty? So cold? Was it natural they were like that? He didn't ask this, but he just stared out at the beach. Then he spoke to her.

"Did Daichi return your card?"

Manami looked at him, and smiled.

"Yes, he did. That was very kind of him. Not very many people would've done that," she explained.

"He's one of a kind of guy. Did you know he covers his dormitory room walls with math equations?" Judai asked. Manami smiled, and giggled, sort of. She didn't know whether this was gossip or just a common conversation between two acquaintances.

"I wouldn't slip it past him. He's smart in that area," Manami spoke.

"Yeah. Once, he brought us, Sho, and me over to his dormitory, just to repaint the walls. Ended up turning into a paint fight," Judai explained. Manami giggled even louder. Judai liked hearing it. It was like a child's laugh that hadn't been released for years.

"I would've loved to be in that fight," she teased. Judai laughed with her, and then heard distant footsteps approaching. He looked up to see a tall boy approach, his yellow blazer glowing splendidly in the sunlight, his sleeked dark hair billowing softly in the gentle wind, his dark eyes ablaze with a smile. He looked at the two of them, and his own smile widened.

"Judai, Manami, am I interrupting?" he asked them. Manami shook her head, and Judai just watched her. Daichi noticed this, and his smile suddenly disappeared for some reason. Then he spoke again. "So, what are you two talking about?"

"You," Manami spoke in an honest, but teasing way. Daichi smiled at her.

"You're not making fun of me, are you?" he asked. Manami shook her head, and Daichi eyed her sketchpad.

"Make any new drawings?" he asked.

"Um…yes, and I redid that one we talked about the other day," she pulled out a piece of paper from the sketchpad and handed it to Daichi. He took it, it was the exact same drawing she had done a few days ago about the ocean, and he saw that she had improved. The waves looked far more realistic, the hills seemed exact length, and there were clouds in the sky, realistic clouds. He scanned the picture, and smiled in a satisfied way.

"Very good. Nice improvement. Only, work on shading the clouds now," he handed the drawing back to her, and she grinned in a pleased way. As he approached her to show her where in the drawing she needed to improve next, he immediately felt the back of his hand touch hers, and this sent a small jolt through his body as he pulled away. However, Manami didn't seem to notice. Ignoring this, he pointed out in the drawing again where she had made mistakes, and eventually she absorbed it in.

"Alright. I'll work on that next, then," she spoke to him. He smiled at her, and then at once noticed some changes in her appearance. She was wearing her bangs back by a hair clip, showing her face fully, her lips were glossed, and her eyelashes had expanded in length. She was wearing make-up. Was she planning to see her crush this morning? Whatever was the reason, Daichi tried to hold off a blush in front of her, because she was stunningly beautiful that day. Then something just blurted out from his throat that he couldn't help but say.

"How's Asuka?"

Startled by his question, Manami answered in the best, possible honest way she could.

"Fine, I guess. I want to kick her ass."

Judai was startled by her answer. He had never known anyone who would say that about Asuka, let alone actually mean it. He could help but ask, "why?"

"She trespassed into my room, and broke something very precious to me," Manami's eyes glared with an icy stab that it sent shivers down Judai's back. "Besides, my opinion, she's a total fake. I've seen girls like her around in my life. I know what they think."

"Have you even got to know Asuka?" Daichi asked her. He sensed a wrongful judgment had been expressed. "Maybe it was an accident."

"Oh, no, trust me, she knows that you're not supposed to go into someone else's room without their consent," Manami scoffed. She turned and started to stalk off towards the woods, and Daichi and Judai exchanged glances. Manami was judging Asuka, not only wrongfully, but also falsely. What if Asuka did trespass into her room and broke something? What if it was an accident? And why does Manami hate her so much? This was not right, and Judai had to find a way to right it.

* * *

Classes went on as usual that day. Manami was seen a few times in the halls, but she was not really talking to anyone. She just walked past with a dark look on her face. Once, Judai even approached Asuka to ask her what happened between her and Manami, and Asuka told the truth as much as she could. That Manami's bedroom door was open, and, although it was wrong for her to go in, she was curious. She saw a picture of two boys in a frame on her desk. She had decided to look at it, and Manami startled her, causing her to drop it and break it.

"I would understand her being angry with me, because I did trespass into her room, and I did break that frame. But why does she think I'm a fake?" Asuka asked Judai during one of the breaks between classes.

"I don't know. She said that she's seen girls like you before," Judai explained. "But why would she hate you if she's seen people like you before?"

"I haven't got the slightest clue. I worry for that girl sometimes," Asuka spoke. "Have you realized she doesn't have any friends here?"

"Really? Then what are we?" Judai teased.

"Very funny. Seriously, she doesn't talk to anyone, she doesn't hang out with anyone. The only people who do talk to her, besides us, are the boys who are forced to believe that the mystery guy she likes is them," she explained to him. Her blond hair was billowing slightly in the cool wind that came into the building through the open windows, while her brown eyes seemed to hold concern within them.

"Why don't you try to talk to her? Try to make her get to know you a bit more," Judai suggested. Asuka thought this over, and actually found that was a good idea. They do have Physical Ed. together. Maybe that would be a perfect opportunity to talk to her.

"That's an excellent idea, Judai. Our Phys. Ed. is next, so I will try to give it a shot. Thanks!" She turned and ran the opposite way towards the gym, and Judai watched, when he suddenly realized that he also had Phys. Ed. next. As soon as the bell rang, he started sprinting after her towards the gym.

* * *

"Batter up!" the coach yelled towards the girls' team. Asuka, who was dressed in her light violet P.E. uniform, turned to see Manami, also dressed in a similar uniform, grab one of the wooden bats and step up towards the plate. Her dark hair, which was held back by a black scrunchy now, reached down to her back and billowed as she walked. Then Asuka turned to first base, where she saw Judai stand there, giving her a thumb-up. Asuka didn't return it, but smiled as she watched the pitcher throw a fastball to her, one that most people would've been striked on, but in a whirl of brown, the ball was sent over the players' heads, and hit the stands with a loud crash. Some of the students, who were either watching or studying up there, ran screaming away from it.

The players watched as Manami ran down the line, past Judai, past the second base player, past the third, and slid directly onto Home base, winning the girls' team four points in the game. The runners, including Manami, returned to the mount to cool off and get some water. Asuka enjoyed watching Manami play sports. It was like watching a cat do tricks. She was never very eager to play, and she wasn't really bragging about how good she was. However, each time she was forced to show her ability, she impressed pretty much everyone. She kept on saying she wasn't good at sports, but this was a flat-out lie when everyone could prove that she was.

Asuka watched Manami for a few moments, and then thought of an excellent way to approach her. She got up from her seat on the bench, and walked towards the girl, who was sitting at the other end. "That was a real good hit, Manami," Asuka spoke. She looked up at her, and then looked away, pretending not to notice her. The blond noticed this, but continued to speak to her, as if they were friends. "Ha! Look at Mitoka! That's what she gets for trying to pull a fast one!"

She was pointing towards a Ra yellow girl in the stands who was trying to flirt with Marufuji Ryo, who had decided to watch the game, because he had free time during this period. Manami looked up slightly, and saw that the girl had a large bruise on her head. She must've been the one who was hit by the ball. Manami didn't speak, though, but just sat there. She looked up more into the stands, and her eyes held such a distant look in them. Then she looked away. Asuka looked up into the stands as well, and saw a flash of yellow. She blinked her eyes, and saw that it was gone. Was it the reflection of the sun that she saw?

She sat beside Manami and watched the game continue. So far, the girls were winning. The ball kept hitting Sho, who was the catcher, as the pitcher threw it, or when someone didn't hit it. As the pitcher, who was an Obelisk Blue sophomore, threw a curved ball, Momoe, who was up at bat, didn't hit it, because the sun got into her eyes, and the ball hit Sho hard between the eyes. He let out a groan, while the girls started laughing, even Manami. Asuka decided to take that as an opportunity to retry talking to her.

"That was pretty hilarious," Asuka spoke.

"Poor Sho. I feel bad for him," Manami spoke.

"Do you like him?" she asked her.

"Kind of. He reminds me of someone I know," Manami spoke honestly.

"Someone that was close to you?" Asuka asked.

"Yeah…" she said this almost empty mindedly. Her grey eyes held that distant, cold gaze within them, and then Asuka thought that maybe, before she could get to know Manami, Manami had to get to know her. She had to open up to her.

"My brother used to love playing baseball," Asuka spoke softly.

"Really?" Manami looked up at her. "Who is he?"

"His name is Fubuki, and he was one of the best here," Asuka explained.

"Fubuki? How come I haven't seen anyone here by that name?" Manami spoke, not really to Asuka, but to herself.

"That's because he disappeared about a year ago," she explained. At once, Manami's eyes widened slightly, and then she looked at her in a concerned way.

"I'm so sorry, Asuka," she spoke.

"It's alright," she waved a hand to signify no hard feelings.

Manami was silent for the rest of the time, and when the class ended, she was quick to get dress back into her uniform and rush out of the gym. Asuka saw her run towards the other end of the school, towards the commissioner's office.

* * *

After classes had ended, Judai started wandering around the grounds for no particular reason. He passed by Sameshima's office, and heard talking coming from inside it. The voices were well familiar, and Judai opened the door just slightly to peer into the room. He saw Manami standing by the next, talking on the phone, which held a screen faced towards her, a man's voice coming from the screen. He also saw someone else in the room, as well. Two older men each dressed in suits, one taller than the other did. The tallest one had black hair, a stern face, and slight goatee as his hair was sleeked into a rather interesting style. The other looked a little younger, his dark eyes stern and watching Manami like a hawk, while he had lighter hair than the other did. Both of them had the same, cold, dark eyes. As Judai looked at these men, he was strangely reminded of Manjyome Jun. Judai couldn't help but listen to the conversation that Manami was having over the phone, though he couldn't hear what the other person was saying, because it was too low.

"Please, Uncle John, I don't want to stay here anymore...Yes, I understand, but…I'm scared, that's why….Yes, Chosaku and Shoji are here. They've been here for the past three hours, looking for me….Please tell me you didn't send them….But…wait…oh, all right…." Manami's voice was low and soft, like she had been crying about something. Her silver eyes did hold tears in them. "But…all right, I'll stay, but please…tell them I said 'hi' at least….Tell Hailey and Daniel 'hi' for me also….Thanks, Uncle John. Bye."

She hung up the phone, and looked out the window behind her. The two men watched her, and then the older one sighed. "Manami, this is really for the best. Abruzzi is trying his best to look out for you," he spoke.

"I know, Chosaku-sama. I just don't want to stay here. I miss them!" Manami spoke, her voice breaking. She was trying to hold back her tears.

"But they want you to be safe. They can't have you there because it's not safe. And they know how much you love dueling," the other man spoke to her. "And our brother will keep you safe."

"Your brother is an A-Class jerk, Shoji! A rumor started about the school about me, and he's taken full advantage of it!" Manami snapped at them. Then she closed her eyes, trying to think. She began to sing a low song, softly, but Judai could hear it. _"Cause we lost it all, nothing lasts forever. I'm sorry, I can't be perfect. Now it's just too late, and we can't o back, I'm sorry, I can't be perfect…."_

"You seem to have Sakuya's talent. That's a real good comfort," Shoji spoke to her. She didn't speak, but her eyes wandered onto the door, and Judai knew that he would be seen if he continued spying. He quickly turned and ran from there, and headed out onto the grounds. Those two men…they looked so familiar, but he didn't remember seeing them. And Manami…sounded so hurt, so confused. He hoped everything was alright with her.

* * *

The night sky was so clear and elegant, it surprised several students. Judai and Sho were outside the Osiris Red dormitory when they saw something unusual. Manami was racing across the grounds, but she wasn't alone. She was being chased by a group of boys, and their leader was Manjyome Jun himself. Apparently, his arm had healed fast, and he was running after Manami. "You can't run forever, Akatsuki!" he yelled at her. Manami was panting hard as she ran, and Judai then had enough, but he couldn't stop watching.

Manami's foot then suddenly slipped from under her, she fell hard onto the ground, letting out a soft groan, and her sketchpad skidded five feet ahead of her, out of her reach. She groaned, and tried to sit up, but not in time until Jun had reached her. His hand collided across her face, and she let out a scream as she hit the ground hard, while three others ran towards her sketchpad. "That's for my arm!" Jun had yelled at her. Judai and Sho noticed a small black box had fallen out of Manami's blazer pocket, and had skidded to Jun's feet.

"Come on, Sho!" Judai spoke, and the two of them ran towards the group. Jun had picked up the box and opened it to see a large deck of cards in it. He laughed, and pulled the cards out, looking through them.

"Take a look at this! Akatsuki has one impressive deck! But nowhere as good as mine!" he laughed at her. He tossed some of the cards to the guys, and they started throwing cards at her like as if they were ordering her to dance for them. She moaned, and whimpered as a card painfully swiped her face, leaving behind a large cut on her cheek. Crimson blood trickled down her face.

"That's enough!" Judai called. The boys looked up to see the two of them running towards them, and Jun laughed.

"This doesn't concern you, Yuki!" he yelled.

"Now it does! Picking on a defenseless girl! Messing with her cards! How low will you go, Manjyome!" Judai yelled. Jun didn't listen, but went through the cards, and saw a card that interested him. He picked it out the deck, throwing the rest in Manami's face, and waved the card between his index and middle finger.

"I think I'll keep this card. It's quite powerful and rare. It'll be put to good use in my deck, don't you agree, Nami?" he asked and laughed loudly. Then something amazing happened to Manami. Her eyes grew dark as shadows filtered into them, and they narrowed in a demonic way. Her lips curled to reveal her bared teeth, which resembled fangs now, her hair went rigid, like the fur of an animal, and she pounced with a demonic roar onto Jun.

Her arms curled up from beneath his and behind his head, getting him into a headlock, and she twisted her body from behind him, throwing him onto the ground with hard slam. Jun let out a loud groan of pain as she released him, and the card slipped out of his hand. A trickle of blood escaped from between his lips. Judai, Sho, and the others were startled by her sudden action, and the fact she had shown immense strength that no normal girl could possess. But Manami wasn't done yet. She grabbed Jun's arm and picked him up from the ground, and swung him hard around, three times, until she let go, and he went flying into the others.

"Whoa!" Judai and Sho yelled. The boys got up, and stared in horror at Manami before they started running away, Jun following slowly behind, limping. Manami ran just a few feet ahead, yelling at them in a dark, and angered voice.

"YEAH, YOU BETTER KEEP RUNNING! YOU MESS WITH MY STUFF AGAIN, I'LL MAKE ALL OF YOU KISS YOUR ASSES IN FRONT OF THE SCHOOL, PERMANENTLY!" she bellowed at them.

The boys yelled in fear, and ran even faster away from her. Sho and Judai exchanged disbelieved stares, even though they had just witnessed it. Then Sho started cheering for her.

"Wow, Manami that was amazing!" he cheered. Manami suddenly went still, she didn't move for a brief moment, and then she turned to them, staring at her scattered cards and flipped, torn sketchpad. Judai noticed the look in her eyes, distant, cold, and sad. The poor girl. He kneeled down and started collecting the cards, not paying any real notice to them. Except for one. The one that Jun had taken interest in. It was Sprite Interchange, the card that Daichi told him about. So, it was Manami's card.

He quickly noticed that Manami and Sho had started gathering up the cards, so Judai quickly placed it in the stack of cards he had, and then handed them back to Manami. She looked down at her recovered deck, and smiled at the boys.

"Thank you, Sho, Judai," she spoke with a slight bow. Her eyes were distant and cold, but held gratitude in them.

"It's no problem, Manami. Jun is a jerk, and if he messes with you again, let us deal with him," Judai spoke. He knew he couldn't take Jun on in fighting, but he wanted to sound like a friend to Manami now. He definitely didn't want to get on her bad side now. She was a strong girl when pushed up into a corner.

"Manami, are you alright?" this came from Sho, and she smiled sweetly at him.

"Yes, I'm fine," she turned, picked up her sketchpad, and started walking away down the pathway away from them. Judai and Sho watched her with looks of confusion and concern. She seemed distracted now. Something was strongly bothering her. And they both wished they could help.

Watching them above on the hill a few yards away, a boy stood in a brilliantly glowing yellow blazer; his dark hair sleeked and glistened in the falling moonlight, while his dark eyes were focused darkly on them. He seen the whole event, and he was also worried about the girl. But as he thought of her, he couldn't help but feel his cheeks flow red. Every time he thought of her, a knot would grow in his stomach, and he would feel a little uneasy, nervous. Why was that? He kept thinking about her, more often than he used to. Whenever she spoke to him, her words, her voice, would echo in his mind.

"_Pleasure. And what do I owe this pleasure?" _

"_You okay?" _

"_Daughter to father, daughter to father…I am broken, but I am hoping…." _

"_I wanted to thank you….You returned my card, which was a rare and powerful card. Not very many people would have done that….But it is. If any other guy found that card, they would either keep it and claim it was theirs, or they would have used it to take advantage of me. You're a real gentleman, Daichi…."_

"_I've never really had anyone look at any of my drawings, unless they take them from me…."_

"_I'm not offended, Daichi..." _

"_Why are you so interested, Misawa Daichi?" _

"_If I told you, eventually everyone will know, and I don't want anyone to know. I'm not saying you'll tell everyone, but someone can overhear, and then spread it. I've learned not to say anything personal or confidential out in public, or to anyone, for that matter…."_

"_I have to go, but I'll see you later, okay, Daichi. It was nice talking to you!"_

All the things she has told him, all the words she has spoken, they still echo in his mind, and he couldn't help but feel a little nervous each time he heard her voice. It was strange, confusing, and distracting. He found himself thinking about her during his classes, and this would distract him from his work. He found himself thinking of her when he looked at the ocean, thinking of how beautiful her eyes were. He couldn't help but try to hide these emotions. He didn't know how to explain how he felt. When he saw her, he felt happy and tired at the same time. He felt his stomach turn into a knot inside. He felt upset and mad that she was looking at him, talking to him. He felt confused about what he should do around her. He felt hurt of saying anything to her, worried they may come out the wrong way. Sometimes he would find himself wondering what it would feel like to hold her, to kiss her, to….

"Hey, Daichi!" the voice seemed to snap him out of his daydream, and he looked down to see Judai and Sho waving at him. He waved back, but didn't really join them, because he felt that if he did, he would embarrass himself by talking about her. Inside he felt like that was the only possible way he would gain her attention, but he knew that, although no one knew who she liked, that he wasn't the one, no matter how hard he wished.

* * *

FD: Okay…corny chapter, but I tried. If you have any ideas as to who the mystery guy is, please tell me, who you think it is, although I won't tell you. You'll have to read the story to find out who it is. I'll give a hint though; he's almost the exact same age as her. That's all for now. Read and review, please. I would very much appreciate it. 


	6. I Promise You

Chapter V: "I Promise You…."

* * *

As the holidays grew nearer, more students became preoccupied with plans and goals for either their breaks or decorating the school to the way they wanted to. The first holiday approaching was Thanksgiving, and most of the students in the school were going home to enjoy the holiday with their families. Few students had decided to stick around to either catch up on their work, to study, or because their families were busy during the holiday to the extent where they couldn't go home. Yuki Judai, Marufuji Sho and Ryo, Maeda Hayato, Tenjoin Asuka, and Misawa Daichi were amongst this group. Judai had to stay at school because he was falling behind in his work and had to catch up, while the same thing with Sho. Hayato's father was busy for his work during the holiday and he had to stay, while Asuka's parents were gone visiting her ill grandmother, and she couldn't come home. Daichi, more than anything, wanted to get ahead in his work and improve even more in his dueling capabilities. Ryo's reason for staying behind was quite confusing, even to his little brother, Sho (which was no surprise). He had spotted Manami hanging around the school after those who were leaving had left on the boat, and he explained that this would be a perfect opportunity, but for what, though? No one found this out, at least, not until Thanksgiving night.

Daichi had invited Judai, Sho, and Hayato over to the Ra yellow dormitory building to enjoy a delicious Thanksgiving dinner, and as they entered the building, a brush of black passed them, followed by a rush of gold. The four boys turned to see Manami race out of the building, being followed closely by a group of Ra yellow boys. It was strange to see someone outside of their uniform, because Manami wasn't dressed in her normal Blue blazer. Instead, she was dressed in a rather dark blue, high-neck tanktop, while a black skirt wrapped around her legs tightly, and high black polyester boots reached up to her knees as she ran. But on another different standard, the boys weren't chasing her because they were wondering who she liked. They were chasing her…for fun.

"We're going to catch you, Manami!" one of the boys yelled.

"Oh, no, you're not!" Manami cried as she looked behind her. She waved quickly to Judai and his friends, and then dived under a tree. Her hand gripped a branch, and she pulled herself up almost acrobatically onto the top of the branch. The group of boys rushed under her stupidly, and then they turned to see her waving at them innocently from the branch. It was an amusing feat to Judai, Sho, Hayato, and Daichi as they continued to watch, laughing as one of the boys dived for the branch, but Manami jumped up, grabbing onto another branch three feet up in the tree above her, causing the one she had been on to be repelled by her feet and hit the boy hard in the face. Judai and his friends immediately broke into a fit of laughter at this.

"Hey, Manami, I didn't know you were an acrobat!" Daichi called to her, holding in his laugh. She turned to them, and responded.

"I didn't know I was, either. I'm just having fun toying with these boys," she said with an entertained smile. Her smile flashed in the falling sunlight, and one of the boys climbed up onto a limb, trying hard to reach her, but she leapt to another branch, accidentally kicking the boy in the face. "Whoops! Watch out there!"

The four of them were still laughing as they continued to walk down the hall and towards the cafeteria of the building. "That was cool! I didn't know Manami could jump that high!" Judai exclaimed.

"With those legs, I'd buy it!" Sho spoke, but slapped his hands over his mouth. The other three looked at him suspiciously, but it was Judai who spoke first.

"What are you doing, staring at her legs?" he teased.

"I'm not…it's just….Well, isn't it obvious, Judai? We saw her swimming that other day a few weeks back, and then how she kicked Jun's ass. I'd buy it any time," Sho explained, but a light red was appearing over his face.

"Uh-huh. Sho, you like her, don't you?" Hayato teased. Sho's face immediately went scarlet, and he shook his head in denial.

"Yeah, you do!" Judai teased.

"No! I don't! You like Asuka!" Sho snapped at him.

"No, I don't," Judai spoke, but a faint red was appearing on his face. Daichi decided to stay out of this conversation, but a part of his mind kept wondering whether or not he had feelings for the girl himself. When he was around her, a part of him felt neutral, and calm, but then his stomach would turn into a knot and he would be startled and confused of what to say to her. It was a strange feeling, and each time it washed over him, he always felt like he would vomit. But it couldn't be helped as the conversation was soon directed towards him.

"So, Daichi, what about you?" Judai spoke to him.

"What about me what?" Daichi asked him.

"How do you feel about Manami?" Sho asked.

"I think she's alright. She's a talented girl, and quite smart," Daichi spoke as calmly as he could. However, Judai and Hayato grinned mischievously, and a light blush washed onto his face.

"But she's pretty, isn't she?" Hayato teased. Daichi didn't answer, but his head moved in a fashion that resembled a nod. He turned from them before they noticed, but too late.

"Ha! I knew it! You like her!" Judai cheered. Daichi sighed in an almost exasperated way. Judai was always poking fun at each of them, so it didn't matter whether or not he liked Manami or not, the answer would always be yes in his eyes.

* * *

Outside on the school grounds, right after Manami had chased off the boys following her, she found Asuka standing close to the edge of the shore on the beach, staring blankly at the ocean. Manami then thought of something, something that would cheer Asuka up, and have a great way to have fun. Manami approached her on the beach behind her, and poked her on the shoulder. Asuka turned, her blond hair swaying in the gentle breeze. Her smile was warm as she greeted Manami, and at once she spoke.

"Manami, what's up? I didn't know you were still here," Asuka spoke.

"Oh, um…yeah, my family is kind of busy during the holidays," Manami explained to her. "Hey, you want to have some fun?"

Asuka raised an eyebrow suspiciously, and then crossed her arms over her chest in an expecting way.

"I'm listening," she said.

"I'm thinking we pull a little prank on the boys. How about it?" Asuka smiled as Manami told her the plan.

* * *

"Wow! Look at all this food!" Judai cried as he, Sho, and Hayato stared with open mouths drooling at the large table filled with different kinds of assortments of food. There was a large turkey in the center of table, while beside it were different trays of food; potatoes, salad, dressings, puddings, cranberry sauce, stuffing, biscuits, tarts, steak, ham, chicken, white bread, rye, pumpernickel, olives, sweet potatoes, and many others. It all sent an aroma of delicious taste into the air, and at once the three of them were entranced within it. Daichi couldn't help but smile as his friends started to dig into the food. A few minutes into the dinner, the doors to the room opened, and all the students who were in there turned to see two Obelisk Blue girls walk into the room, smiles on both of their faces. Manami and Asuka smiled, first at the room, then at each other, and walked towards the table where the four boys sat.

"Hey, boys, what's up?" Manami asked, taking a seat between Daichi and Sho. Asuka sat between Judai and Hayato, and were both giggling lightly. Something strange was going on. Why were these two girls, who weren't really considered friends, together and sitting with them when they should be at the Obelisk Blue dormitory, enjoying the dinner there? Judai and Daichi exchanged worried glances, but this quickly vanished as the girls started talking to them, also partaking in the dinner. However, neither one was eating very much.

"Um…Manami, what are you and Asuka doing here?" Sho asked shyly. Manami smiled at him, fluttering her eyelashes.

"We got invited by the head of the Ra Yellow dormitory. Ayukawa-sama is a real close friend, no?" Manami spoke flirtatiously. Sho's face immediately went scarlet as she spoke to him. "You don't have a problem, do you, Sho-kun?"

"Um…uh…no, no, not at all!" he spoke, smiling, waving his hands in the air. Manami smiled mischievously briefly, and then turned to Daichi with a very small, beautiful, flirting smile.

"What about you, Misawa-chan?" she asked, her eyelashes fluttering like wings. His face immediately went scarlet, and he back up slightly. A small sweat drop ran down the side of his face, embarrassed, and turned away, trying to hide his face with his hand, while signaling to her that he didn't.

Across the table, Asuka was flirting generously with Judai while Hayato watched disappointedly. She kept lowering her eyelids in a soft way, staring at him dreamily, while talking to him in a gentle manner.

"So, Yuki-chan, tell me, why are you here instead of the Osiris dorm?" she asked softly. Judai looked at in a surprised way, and his face went red. He had never had a girl flirt with him like this. He looked over to his friends, and saw that Sho was sitting next to Manami, but was staring down at the table, his whole face scarlet. Daichi's face was turned from them, but a hot redness was covering it. Manami was looking over at him, but was looking at Asuka with a pleased smile on her face.

Throughout the whole dinner, the girls continued to flirt with the guys, Manami to Daichi and Sho, and Asuka to Judai and Hayato. It was ridiculous, yet amusing, because by the time they had finished, all boys' faces were scarlet red, and were staring blankly at the table, trying not to look at the girls. Finally, both Asuka and Manami got up from the table, and, giggling, they asked two of the boys to accompany them. Guess which ones….

"Oh, Misawa-chan…." Manami spoke in a flirtatious, sing-song way. Her hand trailed onto his shoulder, and slowly moved to his neck. "Will you please come with me outside? I would really appreciate it, and I really need to talk to you."

Her voice cooned softly in his ear, and he lost all common sense as he stood up and accompanied her outside, and it was almost instinct that his hand wrapped around hers. They disappeared behind the doors and into outside, while Asuka performed her trick on Judai. Using a different method, she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him towards her.

"Yuki-chan! Please, come with me? We need to talk," she pleaded. Judai whined, complaining that he wanted to eat, but Asuka began to coon to him softly, and her fingers trailed his cheek seductively. This sent shivers down Judai's back, but he obeyed and stood up, following Asuka outside onto the grounds.

* * *

"Um…what do you need to talk about, Manami?" Daichi asked her as they were out on the beach. She turned to him, her smile soft, warm, and comforting. She pulled her hand out of his grasp, and seemed to touch his arm only briefly until she at last pulled away.

"Race me," she spoke calmly.

"What?" Daichi was caught off guard by what she said.

"Race with me. First one to the edge of the beach wins," she spoke. Daichi blinked, and then thought.

"Wait, what do you mean? This is all you wanted to do? You dragged me out here, to race you?" Daichi asked.

"Yeah. Why? Are you chicken?" she asked.

"No, but I'm not going to race you. This is ridiculous!" Daichi spoke.

"You're scared that you're going to lose. That's it, huh? I knew it!" Manami taunted.

"I'm not scared, and I'm not going to race you. I'm heading back!" Daichi began to turn to walk away when Manami spoke to him.

"There's a special prize if you win," Manami spoke flirtatiously. Daichi stopped, and listened to her.

"What kind of prize?" he asked.

"It's your choice, Misawa-chan. If you win, I either tell you who I like, or…." Daichi turned to see her eyes watching him softly. He knew what else she meant. And a part of him wanted it. But he also wanted to know who the mystery guy she liked was. So, the only way he was going to get either was if he raced her…and won.

"I'll race you, if you tell me what happens if you win," he demanded.

"Nothing, really. You just can't ever tell anyone about my card," she spoke to him. "You know the one, 'Sprite Interchange.'"

"Fine," he spoke. He approached her, and looked her into her eyes. "But no cheating."

Her eyes widened in shock, and she scoffed in disappointment. She then glared at him in a dark, serious way.

"What a terrible, dastardly thing to say to me! I don't cheat! I insist that you take that back now!" she yelled, and Daichi could see she was serious. "Is that Principle Sameshima?"

Daichi turned towards the hills, hoping to see Sameshima, but when he saw nothing, he turned back to see Manami had disappeared. He had been fooled. He looked ahead to see Manami was five feet ahead, and running fast. He started running also, chasing after her, the wind of the beach whipping at his face. Cool, and soft, he smiled in amusement as he called after her.

"Ah! Manami, you cheated!" he yelled.

"I know, I'm sorry!" she laughed as she continued to run, not turning to look at him. Even though the cap between them was closing, but Manami was still ahead, by three feet.

He couldn't help but laugh in enjoyment of their race. He had never acted this way around a girl, like a friend, like someone he could share things with. He saw the edge of the shore approaching as Manami ran, and he had to find a way to stop her from winning. He needed to find out who the guy was. Then an idea hit so fast that it was put into action immediately.

The finish line was barely eight feet away, Manami was only two, when Daichi immediately pounced and grabbed Manami by the shoulders. She let out a cry as her body fell towards the sand, Daichi holding onto her around the waist. The two of them fell onto the beach with a hard bounce, and Manami decided to fight back. She tried to roll around in his arms, trying to break free, but it only caused the two of them to roll off of the sand and into the cold, chilling water of the ocean. Both laughing, Daichi released her, but only to be pushed into the water by one of her arms. She started dunking his head beneath the surface, and he was caught off guard. He rolled over, and grabbed her wrists, pulling her into it with him.

"Daichi, get off!" Manami cried as he pinned her to the bottom with his hands. She couldn't help but laugh under the water, allowing her throat to be filled almost dangerously. She started to struggle, and he released her, allowing her to sit up and cough up the water.

"You okay?" he asked. She coughed up the last drop, and then looked at him mischievously before letting out a growl and pouncing on him playfully. As it was her turn to pin him, he felt the warmth of her body and her amazing strength as she held him down, but he started to struggle. He immediately slipped one hand from her grasp, and that arm wrapped tightly around her waist. As he started to stand up, with a forceful strength, he hoisted her up over his shoulder with one arm, and she started thrashing wildly on him.

"No! No! You can't do this! That's not fair! Put me down!" she demanded, her legs kicking hard against his chest while her fists pounded on his back.

"I can do anything I want, Manami," he spoke, holding in his laugh of triumph.

"No! Put me down! Put me down, Daichi!" she begged.

"If you insist," he spoke mischeviously. He flipped her off his shoulder, and she flipped hard into the water, landing on her back. She laid there, staring dumbly into the sky, and then glared at Daichi. He smiled sinisterly at her. "You said to put you down."

She sat up, and continued to glare at him, and he hated that look. He kneeled down to her level with an apologetic smile.

"Sorry. Forgive me?" he asked. At that moment, she spat water right in his face, and, although that smile didn't fade, his voice was now stern and annoyed. "Alright, I deserved that." He started to wipe the water from his face, and saw that Manami was standing back up. He noticed that her black outfit was soaked to her skin, her boots were ruined, filled with water, and her skirt was sticking to her legs tightly. Her hair was soaked to her shoulders, and droplets of water was falling from her face. Daichi felt that his clothes were also soaked to his skin, as well. He looked up at the moon, which was full and bright white in the dark sky.

"Hey, Daichi! Manami!" Two familiar voices echoed in the night from behind them, and they turned to see Judai and Asuka standing on the shore, smiling at them and Judai was cheering at them.

"Guess what, Daichi! It was all just a trick! A prank! The girls were pretending to flirt with us!" Judai cried. Daichi's eyes widened in surprise, and he looked at Manami in hopes of an answer. She smiled sweetly, and nodded.

"It's true. We wanted to prank you boys and see if you would respond to us flirting. Turns out we were right," Manami spoke honestly to them. Daichi's mouth dropped in surprise. So, all the flirting, all the teasing, the race, the playing, was all fake? Manami didn't feel that way towards him at all? Wow…this really hurt. The knot in Daichi's stomach seemed to tighten painfully, his heart seemed to drop, and he felt like everything had just vanished. Nothing was real. Manami didn't feel that way about him. She never will.

He was so stupid to think she could like him. Matter of fact, he was stupid for liking her in the first place. As Manami started wading towards the shore, Daichi called out to her, and she turned to him, concern in her eyes.

"Manami, am I ever going to know who you like?" he asked. Her smile widened, and became more warm, more sweeter, than any smile she ever gave him. Her eyes, cold and gray, held a sparkle unlike any other in them, and Daichi's heart fluttered by her expression.

"I promise you, Daichi, one day I will tell you who he is. But until then, I'll keep it a secret," she spoke delicately to him. "This, I promise you…."

She turned and walked away past Asuka and Judai, and towards the Obelisk Blue dormitory. The three of them stood in silence, and then Judai and Asuka started giggling. Daichi noticed this, and then spoke.

"I must've missed the joke," he spoke.

"The joke is on you, man. For a brief moment, Manami wasn't playing," Judai spoke to him, laughing.

"What? What do you mean?" Daichi asked. Asuka explained it to him.

"Daichi, we saw the whole thing between you two, and that water fight—which, by the way, you started when you tackled her---wasn't planned. During that, Manami wasn't playing to flirt or act like she liked you," Asuka confessed. "We saw sparks between you two."

Daichi's heart gave a sudden flutter once more, and the knot loosened at once. "You mean…wait, I thought it was all just a prank. You mean, she wasn't acting?" he asked.

"We're not sure if she was or wasn't, but we saw sparks between you two. So now we know who she likes, and it's you, Misawa Daichi," Asuka explained. Daichi's eyes widened in surprise, and his heart fluttered at an extreme pace while his face went scarlet. So, he was the one that she liked? He was her mystery guy?

* * *

As soon as the holiday weekend was over, all the students returned, mourning the fact they had to return to schoolwork and the teachers on the island. Early on the morning when classes had restarted, Misawa Daichi stood out on the beach before his dormitory, staring out at the ocean, lost in thought. He was still focused on the possibility of him being the one Manami likes. Why didn't he see it before? His friends could, but he couldn't. They could even tell that he liked her. So…what can he do now? If he told Manami that he liked her, there was always the chance of his friends being wrong and her not liking him. Then he would embarrass himself, and he didn't want that. But, what if his friends were true, and by him not telling her how he felt, he could be hurting her feelings. It was hard to decide on what to do. He was so confused by this that he couldn't focus on the upcoming schoolwork.

"Isn't the ocean relaxing?" spoke a voice from behind him. Daichi turned to see Manami standing there, her eyes staring dreamily into the horizon. He didn't say anything, not even when she approached his side and stared out with him. A few moments passed until he spoke to her.

"Manami, I'm not asking you to tell me who he is. But…at least, tell me what he's like, or how you feel about him," he begged. She smiled at him, her eyes sweetly sparking with the sunlight.

"Well…he's smart, handsome, charming, clever, and one of the strongest duelist in the school. When I'm around him, I feel safe and secure, I feel like I fit in around him, like I belong. But a part of me feels twisted inside, confused, lost, and alone. I'm able to talk to him like a friend, but I doubt he even realizes my feelings for him. Inside, I want to know how he feels about me, but I'm too scared that he may not like me like how I like him," she explained. That was exactly how he felt towards her. It was him. He was right. And what made it even more surprising was that she liked him the exact same way. However, her eyes weren't on him anymore, but on the ocean. The waves returned to there feet, and then pulled away. It was almost magical, standing there together, watching the ocean, only one knowing that they both felt the same while the other was confused and hoping.

"Manami…" Daichi suddenly spoke to her. His hand trailed towards her, but it never touched her. She smiled sweetly at him, and then turned away from him, starting to walk away. She turned briefly to him, a sweet smile on her face.

"I promise you, Daichi, you will know the identity of my crush one day," she spoke, and then walked away, disappearing into the sunlight. Daichi smiled. I already know, Manami, he thought. And he feels the same way for you as you do for him.

* * *

FD: Okay, shorter chapter, but I had to get this one done like right away. I'm experiencing some difficulties, having writer's-block, and I'm trying hard to think of what happens next. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, a bit corny, a little too romantic, but I tried. Like I said, review if you enjoy it, and if you didn't, then don't. Peace! 


	7. The Girl They Once Knew

Chapter VI: The Girl They Once Knew

* * *

During classes that day, Marufuji Ryo had been seen around a lot at the classes Manami went to. Even math and this infuriated Misawa Daichi to no end. However, whenever Manami came out of her class, Ryo would grab her arm and try to talk to her, but she always pulled away, brushing him off like as if she had a choice not to talk to him. Daichi noticed this quite often, and saw that Manami was getting annoyed. Therefore, after Math class, he cornered Ryo, who was standing outside. He was looking for Manami, but she was still inside the class, talking with one of the students about Theorem 3-19. Daichi acted casual, and then approached Ryo in a calm fashion. 

"Marufuji Ryo, hey, what are you doing here?" Daichi asked.

"Waiting for Manami. I really need to talk to her," Ryo spoke.

"Why? Are you two together?" Daichi spoke, raising one eyebrow suspiciously.

"No, it's about something else. Something I found," Ryo explained.

"What was it?"

Ryo rolled his eyes in an annoyed way. "Are you going to keep pestering if I tell you?" he asked.

"Maybe," Daichi spoke almost childishly. He really wanted to know why Ryo was messing with Manami when she didn't want to talk to him. He even remembered earlier, when he passed them in the hall after Manami's Physical Ed. class, he had overheard Ryo threaten he was going to tell Sameshima something if Manami didn't talk to him. This was what drew Daichi's attention. Ryo had no right to threaten Manami about anything.

Ryo reached into his pocket, and pulled out a small, orange, round container filled with small, white pills. It resembled those given at a pharmacy, but when Daichi looked at it, it said "Onogaisa." That was a drug in Japan, illegal, but common to find. Similar to cocaine in the United States, but it caused whoever used it to act seductively and sometimes cause them to go crazy, possibly kill others or themselves. What was Ryo doing with that drug?

"I found it in Manami's room. It was the reason I stayed behind. I had noticed her doing many crazy things, and acting very peculiar, so I needed to find out why. I found a lot of drugs in her room from cocaine to ecstasy to morpheme to peyote," Ryo explained.

"Why…why is she taking drugs?" Daichi couldn't help but ask.

"I don't know, but I took all of them out of there. I don't want to see her high anymore. She's a good person, and if she's addicted, she needs help. A couple of weeks ago, she fell off her balcony because she was high," Ryo confessed. "Luckily, I caught her."

"Why didn't you tell anyone?" Daichi asked.

"Like they're going to believe me! A sweet, shy, innocent, smart girl high on drugs? Yeah, I have a better chance convicting Judai for murder," Ryo spoke softly, because Chronos had just walked by, and he would love to get a chance to expel Judai from the school. "I've been trying to talk to her all day about this, but she doesn't seem to want to listen."

Daichi thought about this, and then it hit him. What if someone she knew and trusted started talking to her about this? What if he would? She listens to him, she even trusts him. So, maybe….

"What if I talked to her?" Daichi asked. "She listens to me."

"You have as good of a shot as anyone, Daichi. I just want her to realize what she's doing to herself," Ryo spoke. He tossed the container over his shoulder, and it fell directly into a school trashcan behind him. Daichi had to figure out a way to approach her about this, and there was only one way to do that.

* * *

Later on in the afternoon, Daichi could see Manami sitting on the grass before the school, her sketchpad next to her. She looked so pale, now. Like as if she hadn't eaten in weeks. Her blue blazer just seemed to glow lightly on her skin. It was like Daichi was looking at her in a completely new way. In fact, this was the first time he ever saw her this small. As Daichi approached, he heard her singing softly, and it was like she was singing a song to no one. He couldn't help but listen to her words. 

"_Holding my last breath, safe inside myself. Are all my thoughts of you? Sweet raptured light, it ends here tonight. Closing your eyes to disappear. You pray your dreams will lead you here. But still you wake and know the truth…no one's there…."_

The way she sang it was so softly and lightly, like soprano, but he felt that this song was special to her. Why was she singing such a song? Before he could ask, she turned to see him, and smiled sweetly.

"Konnichiwa, Daichi-san," she spoke calmly. He smiled at her.

"Konnichiwa," he responded, sitting next to her. "Can we talk about something?"

"Sure," she spoke.

"I want to talk about you. Someone just gave me information about you," he spoke, but she cut him off.

"If it has to do with Ryo and the drugs, I already know. I heard the whole thing," she spoke. Daichi's face went red, and he looked away. How embarrassing!

"Well, then I only have one other thing to say. Why?" he looked at her with a confused look on his face.

"Isn't it obvious?" she asked. Her eyes now held coldness within them. Sharp, chilling shudders ran through Daichi's body as she looked at him this way. Not one ounce of comfort or warmth was in them. Not one ounce of a smile was on her face. She looked so serious, so cold, so…mean. Daichi turned away, not wanting to see that look again.

"No, it's not. Why are you taking drugs?" he asked. This was the first, actual, serious conversation they ever had, and it hurt a lot to be questioning her like a suspect in a very serious crime. He was intimidating her, and it didn't feel right.

"I'll explain to you why I take them. Not all those drugs I take. Only morpheme and onagaisa," she told him. This brought another tight knot to his stomach. Was the reason for the acting last night, the flirting, the teasing, all because of the drugs? He did realize that she wasn't acting herself. Therefore, it had to be the drugs. "But I'll tell you now, I'm not an addict."

"You're starting to sound like one," he spoke without thinking. This brought anger to her eyes, rage that was boiling up. She didn't strike him, though. Luckily.

"I take those drugs for a reason. Morpheme to kill the pain that goes through me every damn day, and onagaisa so that I won't have to act like an idiot when I'm on morpheme," she told him sternly, anger was definitely rising in her tone.

"Yeah, flirting with guys and fooling them into liking you, yeah, that's not what an idiot does," Daichi couldn't control his mouth. He was saying things he normally wouldn't say. The anger that had been buried within him was coming out in a way he never thought. As he told Manami that, her eyes narrowed angrily, and a few tears were flowing to her eyes. She then stood up and picked up her sketchpad.

"You know what, I don't have to listen to you! I thought I could trust you! I thought you were my friend! However, I guess none of that matters to you! I guess the only thing you think of me is a drug addict!" she cried. She tried hard to hold in the tears, but he saw a few were falling from her face.

"Well, that what you are for taking drugs!" Daichi yelled. He wasn't even noticing that his words were hurting her. More tears were falling from his face. He was very lucky that no one else was around to hear them fighting.

"I guess nothing matter to you now! It doesn't matter to you that I use those drugs to forget! It doesn't matter that I cry myself to sleep at night! Nothing matters to you! You never liked me before, and now you hate me for using those drugs! I'm not an addict, Daichi! I use those to help me! Now, I guess nothing will help me! Not even you!" she turned and began to walk away, but Daichi immediately stood up and grabbed her wrist.

"Don't walk away! I'm not done!" She looked at him, her eyes flooding with tears that rivered down her chin. "If you'll just tell me, why are you in so much pain? Why are you taking drugs? Why are you so upset?"

The anger that was flooding her seemed to come out in such a rush. She had dropped her sketchpad and pulled from his grasp, but she didn't run away, she just stood there, sobbing, and then she spoke loudly.

"BECAUSE I'M IN WITNESS PROTECTION!" she screamed. Daichi's eyes widened, and he felt like such a jerk. He had been accusing her of being a drug addict. He had been hurting her, causing her to cry, causing her to express true pain. Now, he had forced her to say something that he really didn't want to hear now. Witness Protection? That meant she was in danger of being killed. Someone had threatened her life. He reached out and started to wipe away tears from her face, trying to comfort her as she sobbed.

"Shh! It's okay, it's okay," he asked, comforting her by wiping away her tears. She was scared, scared of dying, scared of being hurt. This was the reason why she used the drugs. To not feel anything, to feel like as if she was nothing. No one would notice her, no one would hurt her. The drugs made her believe that, and now she had to give them up and live in that pain and fear again. He felt compelled to hold her, and so he did. He wrapped his arms around her and allowed her to sob into his chest. Her tears continued to flow as he held her, but it was the only way to comfort her. He was able to get her to explain why she was on drugs, and perhaps now this will help her get off them. As he held her, for a brief moment, he felt as if the two of them were the same. Like as if they were meant to be. However, a moment later, Manami pulled away and ran off, tears flooding her eyes. Daichi knew there was nothing else he could do. Ryo said he had removed all of the drugs from her room, but he didn't know that she thought of them as the only way to escape.

* * *

No one truly had seen Manami the next couple of days. She had not been to the classes, or outside drawing. No one in Obelisk Blue, not even Ryo or Asuka, saw her outside of her room. This became quite questionable, because several people who knew Manami or were close to her started asking her sensei, Ayukawa Emi. She was the head of the Obelisk Blue girls' dormitory. She explained the same reason for Manami's absence ten times, three of those times to Misawa Daichi. Manami has fallen quite ill, and has been excused from classes for a few days. Misawa and Ryo, the only ones who know of Manami's drug condition, started to wonder if her sudden illness was in content with the separation of the drugs. Luckily, they had someone to check in on her. 

"Asuka, you have to do this favor for me!" Daichi had confronted Asuka and had pleaded with her several times for Asuka to check on Manami. Originally, Asuka would have no problem checking on her, but if it was for her own purposes. This time, a guy was asking about Manami, and Asuka was growing steadily suspicious.

"Why?" she asked, she was growing very annoyed by his pleading.

"She…well, Manami…I just want to know if she's alright, okay?" Daichi spoke quickly. The smile that crossed Asuka's face surprised him, and his face flew red.

"You're in love, Misawa-chi!" she teased. His face went scarlet. Chi? What the hell!

"Don't call me that! And, no, I'm not in love!" Daichi spoke quickly.

"Alright, I'll check on her. But you owe me!" Asuka spoke to him. He bowed and moved along down the hall.

* * *

Later that day, Asuka had immediately rushed to the girls' dormitory, had rushed down the hall towards Manami's room, but stopped abruptly to see Ayukawa-sama step out of the room. Asuka approached her, and surprised the older woman slightly. 

"Asuka, what's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing, Ayukawa-sama. Um…how's Manami?" Asuka asked. This was the second time she had asked this question to Ayukawa since the day had begun.

"Alright. She's resting right now," she spoke.

"Is it alright if I pay her a visit? Me and her are close friends," Asuka pleaded. Ayukawa looked her over, and then nodded. She walked away down the opposite direction, and Asuka smiled. She opened the door, and entered the barren, empty room. She had only been in here once before, and it had not changed that much, even in the fading sunlight. A large bureau stood across the room, a desktop with a computer stood on the right wall. There was nothing on the walls but hundreds of drawings, sketches, and pictures of art hung up over every inch of the room, and some were even overlapping each other. The only knew thing added to the room was a small boom box on the desktop. A large, queen size bed stood in the middle, lying within it was a girl dressed a black sweater and black slacks. She was wrapped up tightly in the blankets, and was shivering slightly. Asuka closed the door behind her and approached the bed. The girl's once sleek and beautiful black hair was wild and unruly. Her fist was brought up to her face, hiding her mouth, and tears were falling from her eyes, which were covered and smeared with dark make-up. Echoing from the boom box was a loud, rock song that caught Asuka's attention quite often as the man singing sang a loud, rhyming lyric.

"_I'll be coming home just to be alone! 'Cause I know you're not there, and I know that you don't care! I can hardly wait to leave this place! No matter how hard I try, you're never satisfied! This is not a home, I think I'm better off alone! You always disappear! Even when you're near! This is not my home, I think I'm better off alone! Home! Home! This house is not a home! "_

Asuka tried hard to ignore the lyrics, as they had sounded sad and depressed, although it was being played at a very high and loud level. She approached the girl, and gently touched her shoulders. She jumped, surprised by her touch, and looked up to see Asuka smiling down at her. "Hey, Manami, you okay?" she asked her gently. Manami didn't speak, but she looked at the desktop, where the picture of the two boys and Manami had been repaired and placed in a different frame. More tears flooded from her face, and Asuka sat down at the edge of the bed, gently stroking her arm in a comforting way. "You want to tell me what's wrong?" Asuka asked.

Manami was silent for a moment, her silver eyes cold and watery with tears falling from her face. A few moments of silence passed, and then she spoke. Not towards Asuka, but to no one in particular. It was like she was talking to herself.

"I miss them…" Manami spoke softly, tears falling onto her pillow in which she rested her head.

"Who, Manami?" Asuka asked.

"Mikuyo and Sakuya," Manami answered, but she didn't look at Asuka.

"And…who are they?" Asuka asked.

"My…brothers…." Asuka looked up at the picture on the desktop. Those two boys were her brothers, but she had never heard their names.

"Where are they, Manami?" Asuka asked.

"Sakuya, my big brother…is a musician, the lead singer…of a band….He's on tour, anywhere in the world by now…." Manami spoke softly. Asuka was still stroking her arm caressingly.

"And what about Mikuyo?" Asuka asked.

"He's with my mother….Far away from here, in…America…." Manami spoke. Her voice started breaking and she broke into a sob. Asuka sat up and started to comfort Manami like an older sister. A tight knot had formed in her stomach, and she realized that she and Manami had a lot in common. The two of them had brothers, they two of them missed their brothers. It was one thing that they could relate to, and something that they could share.

Was this the reason she had been absent? Because she missed her brothers so much? Or was there another reason? A reason that couldn't be explained? Asuka continued to comfort Manami, and eventually the girl had stopped sobbing and sat up, brushing Asuka off. The song continued echoing from the boom box, and it started to get on Asuka's nerves.

"_By the time you come home, I'm already stoned! You turn off the TV, and you scream at me! I can hardly wait 'til you get off my case!"_

"Manami, who is this?" Asuka asked, not wanting to hear this anymore.

"It's one of my favorite bands, Three Days Grace. Sakuya would always listen to this, because he said it reminded him of Mom," Manami spoke. Her voice was low and cold, and she wasn't looking at Asuka. Her eyes held this distant, cold gaze in them. No more tears ran down her face, and she was looking coldly out the window.

"Do you mind if I change the song?" Asuka asked. Manami shook her head, still not looking at her, and Asuka stood up, moving towards the desk, and pressed a button with an arrow under the screen on the boom box. Immediately the song changed to another rock song, but it was softer and not as loud. However, the man singing the song was a little lower-toned. The song he was singing sounded strangely familiar to Asuka.

"_There's a pain that sleeps inside. It sleeps with just one eye. And awaken the moment that you're near. Though I try to look away. The pain, it still remains. Only leaving when you're next to me. Do you know that every time you're near, everybody else seems far away? So can you come, and make them disappear? Make them disappear and we can stay!"_

Asuka immediately recognized the song as a song she had heard Manami sing a few weeks ago. Asuka turned to Manami, and saw a sweet smile had appeared on her face. It was sweet, and seemed to add a pleasant glow to her face. Asuka was curious why this song brought a smile to her face so suddenly.

"Manami, who is this?" Asuka asked again.

"It's a band called Hoobastank, while the song is called Disappear. It makes me think of someone special, someone I care about," Manami spoke. Asuka began wondering if that person was Misawa Daichi by any chance. She asked the girl.

"Is that person by any chance the boy you like?"

Manami shook her head.

"No, another song makes me think of him. I listen to this song a lot with my dad, and he and I would sing it a lot. But it's not the only song that makes me think of him," Manami confessed.

Asuka began searching through the CD (which Manami explained to her was a mix-burned CD her brother made for her years ago), and Manami would describe the different bands and songs that were on it. There was one song on the CD that Manami insisted on listening to, and it was mostly a man with a dark, eerie voice singing a rather weird song. Asuka heard this man singing several songs on the CD, but this one song, "Make Me Bad," seemed to be so good to Manami that she started singing it.

"_I am watching the rise and fall of my salvation. There's so much shit around me, such a lack of compassion. I thought it'd be fun and games! Instead, it's all the same. I want something to do, need to feel the sickness in you!"_

Asuka, although couldn't really understand a word the man was saying, had to listen to it as Manami began singing it. When the song was over, the next song caught Asuka's attention. It was a soft song, well, as soft as rock could get. The man singing it spoke in a more adult, mature way, and as he sang, Manami's face just brightened and grew red. She began singing along with it, and it was so good that Asuka wanted to hear it.

"_I could take every fuckin' word she said, throw it in her face. Would she even care? I still remember when she looked at me, a frown upon her face, trying to be something. I've gathered all those little things she's said, kept them close to me, trying to make this real. This cloud won't always hover over me, I'm leaving you today, cause now I see!"_

It was a really good song, and as Asuka and Manami listened to it, Asuka noticed the faint blush on Manami's face grow, and when the song ended and switched onto the next one, an even softer rock song, she noticed Manami's face became burning scarlet as she listened to the next song, which was by the same man. The song was enchanting and mystical, the beat drawing Asuka into it. As she listened to the song, it began to remind her of her brother.

"_Remember all the times that we used to play? You were lost and I would save you. I don't think those feelings will ever fade. You were born a part of me. I was never good at hiding anything. My thoughts break me. Do you understand what you mean to me? You are my faith. Won't you cure my tragedy? Won't you cure my tragedy? Don't take her smile away from me. She's broken, and I'm far away. If you make the world a stage for me, then I hope you can hear me scream. Won't you cure my tragedy?"_

As they listened to that song, both girls became entranced by it, and when it finished, the CD stopped, and the two of them were left there in silence, thinking. Then Asuka asked Manami a question.

"Who do those last two songs make you think of?" she asked slyly. Manami's face couldn't get any more red, and if it could, it would resemble a tomato. She lowered her head in embarrassment, and Asuka smiled. "Of the boy, huh?"

Manami nodded.

"Have you talked to him yet?" Asuka asked. Again, Manami nodded shyly. "What is it about him that you like?"

Manami was silent for a moment, her face absolutely red, and then she spoke softly.

"He's…different from other guys. He's smart, he doesn't goof around, and he's sensitive, caring, and talented…strong…clever…."

"And handsome?" Manami's eyes widened in embarrassment at Asuka's remark. Asuka let out a small laugh. "It's alright if you think he's cute. That basically how most boys are. Cute."

"But…he's so much more than cute…." Manami spoke cutely.

"Oh?" Asuka asked.

"Yeah. When I'm around him, my heart either stops or just beats really fast. When I try to talk to him, my mouth goes dry and I can't find the words. I try not to look like a fool around him, but it's hard. I feel so insecure, so…alone when talking to him," Manami explained. Asuka smiled. Manami was starting to act like a child now, someone who was engulfed in a hypnotizing crush. Someone who was so worried about looking like a fool that they don't notice how the other feels for them. The poor girl.

"Well, all I can tell you is to listen to what your heart tells you," Asuka explained. Manami smiled at her in a gratitude way, and then Asuka spoke. "Are you ready to go back to school tomorrow?"

Manami nodded. "Yeah."

* * *

The next day classes resumed regularly, and Manami didn't miss them this day. Dressed in her Obelisk Blue uniform, she walked with Asuka towards the classes, but parted after that to go to their first period class. As she rushed to her next class with Chronos, someone familiar walked right past her and grabbed her arm. She looked up to see Misawa Daichi. In his dark eyes was concern and she smiled sweetly at this. 

"Manami, are you okay?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm fine," she spoke to him sweetly.

"Okay, I'm just making sure. Are you upset…about…about the…." He couldn't find himself to say it, worrying that it was the reason and he'd upset her again. But she smiled at him.

"You know what, Misawa Daichi? I don't need drugs. They're not a part of my life anymore, and, yes, there'll be pain in my life, but drugs only make me not feel it, they don't make it go away. So, I've decided to quit them for good. By taking them, I'm only hurting myself even more," she explained. Daichi was impressed by her words, and spoke again.

"You've figured that out in a couple of days?" he asked.

"Imagine what I can do with seven," she joked, and he couldn't help but laugh. He was happy to have the old Manami back, the sweet, kind, still shy, girl who was his friend. But then a thought came to him, and he couldn't help but ask it.

"Um…that one night, on Thanksgiving…you weren't on them, were you?" he asked. She smiled, and then raised one eyebrow suspiciously.

"Why are you so interested?" she asked.

"I'm just…curious," he spoke, a blush rising to his face.

"Well, to answer your question, earlier that day, I had taken metapheme, which was kind of like a substitute morpheme, but didn't hurt me or my body. But that night…no, I hadn't taken anything," she spoke. The knot that had been in Daichi's stomach loosened with relief, and he smiled in gratitude. He was happy, because there was a possibility that she liked him. "I have to go to class, okay, Misawa-chi?"

Daichi nodded, but then noticed what she had just called him, and yelled after her as she ran.

"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" he yelled, but Manami was laughing cheerfully as she ran to her class. Daichi was still smiling as he turned to his own class, a blush rising to his face. Manami was back to her old self, if not a little bit more happy. Asuka had done a good thing by talking to her, and he was very pleased to have her back. But then her words echoed in his mind.

"I promise you, Daichi, you will know the identity of my crush one day…."

He wanted more than anything for that day to be today. But he knew it would be her choice, not his, to confess to him. He couldn't rush her, but he couldn't wait forever. He had to know soon, and right before the holidays came. But then a thought came, a plan, and he smiled as he thought this over during classes. It was the perfect plan to get her to confess, and for them to be together. He just hoped it would work.

* * *

FD: Alright, that's a third chapter for this weekend. Or fourth? I lost track. All I know is that I posted up two yesterday, and I'm not sure if I posted up any on Friday. Anyway, for those who had a problem with Manami's weight, the drugs are what explain it. But, no, the story's not over yet. There's still a lot to go, like if Daichi and Manami will ever be together, will she ever confess, and whatever happened to her family and brothers? And what happened to cause her to go into Witness Protection? You'll have to read the rest to find out. I have school this week, but I'll try to update as much as I can. Peace! 


	8. Mistletoe Touch

Chapter VII: Mistletoe Touch

* * *

The Christmas holidays were approaching fast, and all three dormitories were planning to have parties to celebrate such. On the week before Christmas break, almost all the students were decorating their dormitories for their parties and planning on arrangements and foods. The Obelisk Blue dormitory was having a large dance that only Obelisk Blue students were invited to, while Ra yellow and Osiris Red were having regular parties. Most of the students were deciding on what to wear to these occasions, and Asuka was trying hard to convince Manami to sing at the dance. However, Manami had other plans. She was hoping a certain person would invite her to the party as a date, but she didn't really catch their attention all week. Three days before the parties, Manami had been asked by Misawa Daichi to come over to the Ra Yellow dormitory to help decorate. Asuka, Momoe, and Junko also offered to help, mainly because most of the other Obelisk Blue students were taunting anyone who wasn't in Obelisk and messing around with the decorations. As they accompanied Daichi to the dormitory, they also saw Judai, Sho, and Hayato waiting for them outside of Daichi's room, and they all started discussing about decorations. 

The eight of them walked down towards the Ra yellow cafeteria, which had been removed of all tables, all chairs, to reveal a large, wooden room, resembling the gym, slightly. Many of the students were decorating the room with ornaments, banners, and a large Douglas fern tree stood in a far corner barely scraping the ceiling of the room, ten students decorating it with different, colorful lights, ornaments, reefs, and such. Two students were standing on ladders, hanging up a large, bright gold and white banner with red and green ribbons wrapped around to spell "Merry Christmas." The eight of them stared in awe at this, and then Daichi's voice broke them out of their thoughts.

"Well, let's get started!" he spoke, clapping his hands together to signify that they do get moving. Asuka and Judai moved towards the wall to help put up posters and decorations, Momoe and Hayato went to help in the kitchen to help prepare the food, and Junko and Sho moved towards the tree to help decorate it, also. Daichi overheard a Ra Yellow senior boy speak to them both, "Hey, let's have this little Osiris put up the star!" This brought a smile to his face, but caused Sho to blush embarrassingly. He turned to Manami, who was staring at the room with a dazed look in her eyes. Her eyes were so distant, so cold yet had warmth within them. So dark yet held light. It was strange, but it entranced him. He then thought of what they had to do.

"Hey, Manami, I know what we can do," he spoke. She broke out of her thoughts and looked at him confusingly. He pointed to the ceiling where the banner had been hung perfectly, and now the same two students who had hung it up were arguing whether or not to hang up the streamers and ribbons. They also had many Japanese lanterns, and were deciding who would put them up. Manami smiled, and she and Daichi walked over, offering to put them up themselves. The two students didn't argue, and handed the box of lanterns to Manami.

Taking a ladder, the two of them started hanging them up, Daichi holding onto it, not looking up so that he would be staring up Manami's skirt. Thankfully, she was so high up that he couldn't see anything, not that he wanted to. However, when she went up for the first time, she had yelled to him, "If I fall, you better catch me!"

"Oh, don't worry, you won't fall!" he had responded, but then he realized that Manami was terrified of heights, no matter how high. Poor . After they had hung up one lantern, Daichi suggested that he'd hang up the rest, but Manami insisted that she was fine. She even made a point that if he did hang them up, and he fell, she wouldn't be strong enough to catch him, and he accepted that fact. Therefore, she hung up the rest, and then they thought of decorating the rest of the posters so that they could hang some from the ceiling.

This turned out to be of a hassle than it sounded. Manami had a thousand ideas to decorate, and as she did, she demanded for scissors, markers, crayons, pencils, glue, glitter, and a whole bunch of other things. However, it was worth it, because it less than twenty minutes, she had created five posters that were beautiful and creative. Daichi wanted to help, but he ally knocked over the glitter, and some flew into Manami's face. This started a glitter fight between them, and eventually turned into a mess. As the two of them picked it up, Daichi began to notice a glow around Manami. Not literally, but a glow that seemed to catch quite a bit of his attention. Her skins, her smile, her eyes, were all warm when turned to him. She was happy now. He smiled at her as they swept up the fallen glitter and began helping Sho and Junko decorate the tree, which was the most glowing thing in the large room.

When they had finished decorating, it was well into the afternoon, and the eight of them went outside to hang out and talk. Then Daichi remembered Manami singing several times before, and then an idea came into his head. He approached Manami and the two of them walked slowly, out of earshot of the other six, who were talking excitedly about the holiday break.

"So, Manami, I was wondering if you wouldn't mind singing a song at the party. Not a lot, but just one song, if that's okay with you," he spoke. She looked at him, and then looked away, thinking about it for a moment, and then smiled at him.

"Well, you're not the only person to ask me to sing for a party. Asuka also asked me earlier to sing for the dance at the Obelisk Blue dormitory," Manami explained. Daichi smiled, but his head lowered in a disappointed way. "But…because you asked me, I'll sing two songs, okay?"

Daichi's smile brightened, and he nodded, a slight blush flowing to his face.

"Thank you, Manami," he said.

"Don't mention it. We're friends, right?" she asked.

He nodded. Yeah…just friends, he thought sadly.

* * *

On the night of the parties, the students were dressing and preparing to approach the parties. The girls in Obelisk Blue were dressing in formal gowns and dressing like as if going to their prom, while normal students were dressing in their normal uniform or normal clothes. Three Osiris Red students were invited to partake in the party going on at Ra Yellow, while one Obelisk Blue was dressing in her normal clothes, but trying hard to look a bit attractive and like how a singer should look. She kept spinning in front of the mirror of her dresser mirror, staring at her long black hair, which she tried hard to curl, but it was too straight where it couldn't be curled. Her face was covered with light make-up, white eye-shadow, light pink lip-gloss, mascara, and black eyeliner. Her outfit wasn't technically Christmas-like, but it was the close she could get. A white top where the lace sleeves were loose and revealed her small shoulders, a white skirt that went down to her knees, the hem covered in curly lace and was loose around her legs, so when she spun it rose, making her resemble an actual snowflake. She wore white strapped heels, and upon her head was a small white headband that had something of a white crown on it. She looked like an ice princess. She wasn't sure whether it was too much or too little, but, like most s, she had been trying to make herself look this way for the past three hours. Finally, after fixing her headband, examining her skirt, her top, her make-up, she was satisfied with her appearance, and left her room. 

Outside of her room, she saw Momoe, Junko, and Asuka waiting for her, dressed in light blue formal gown and had decorated their hair in different styles. They looked at her, and smiled in a pleased way.

"Wow, Manami, you look nice. Going out on a date?" Asuka asked.

"How come you're not in a dress?" Momoe asked.

"And what is that on your head?" Junko asked.

"I don't have time for this. I have to hurry to the Ra Yellow dormitory to sing," Manami spoke quickly, rushing past the s and heading out onto the grounds. It was hard running in heels, but she had been used to it for eight years, so it was no big problem for her. She raced across the grounds, and realized how beautiful this night was. The dark night sky was clear of all clouds, the stars sparkling like glittering diamonds, while the moon looked so full, so bright, and so close. It was a beautiful night, but also cold. Manami was starting to wander why she had decided to wear a skirt, heels, and a low-top on such a cold night. However, she ignored this as she raced across the pathway towards the Ra Yellow dormitory.

Outside of the building, Judai, Sho, Hayato, and Daichi were all waiting for her, dressed in their regular uniform blazers. When they saw Manami, they all smiled, and complimented her appearance as she approached them and tried to fix her hair. Sho was blushing at her, while Judai kept on pointing at her headband, and Hayato was commenting on her heels, asking whether or not they were painful. Daichi said nothing but he had to admit it, especially to her. She looked absolutely beautiful that night. But he didn't say it aloud.

"So, you ready?" he asked. "Do you need someone to play background, or what?"

"No, there's no need. I brought my own," Manami held up two blank CD's to them, and they nodded in acceptance. Daichi allowed her to go in ahead of them, and they followed. As they entered the room, they saw that a large stage had been put up where a DJ was playing music and accepting song suggestions. Manami caught a lot of attention in the room, but she didn't pay notice to this as Daichi led her to the stage. He stopped her at the stairs, and spoke to her. Wishing her good luck, he watched as she walked on stage, began talking to the DJ, and handed him the CD's. He smiled at her, and started playing one of them, a soft guitar playing in the background while Manami approached the microphone and spoke into it.

Manami began singing the first song with a great voice. Elegant, gentle, soft, yet harmonious, it pretty much brought a smile to everyone's faces as she sang. (A/N: If you want to know what song she is supposedly singing, look for a song called "First Cut is the Deepest" by Sheryl Crow. It's a nice song). After Manami had finished singing this song, the DJ started playing some different songs and spoke to her about coming back later to sing again. She walked off the stage and smiled at Daichi, who smiled back, trying to retain the blush forming on his face. He had never heard a sing so well in his life. However, there was no success, as Manami quickly noticed it.

"Misawa-chi, you're red. Do you have a fever?" she asked. His face became even redder.

"Um…no, I feel fine. And don't call me that!" Misawa demanded. Manami shrugged, and then Sho came up to her, asking her to dance with him. Smiling sweetly, she accompanied him onto the floor to dance. Daichi watched the two of them dance, and then noticed that Hayato had disappeared towards the buffet. Only Judai remained with him, watching the two of them dance.

"They look really cute together," Judai spoke so suddenly. Daichi turned, an eyebrow raised suspiciously. Judai nodded towards Sho and Manami, who were dancing almost perfectly together. "You really need to say something to her before you lose her for good."

"I can't. I don't want to look like an idiot," Daichi spoke.

"Confessing your feelings of complete desire and passion to a who's a year older than you in a room filled with hundred of your fellow Ra yellow classmates? Where would you get that idea?" Judai asked, and Daichi laughed sarcastically. That only made it worse. He looked up, and noticed, that as a practical joke, someone had hung up mistletoes all over the ceiling. His heart gave a back flip as he stared at them. He really hoped that no one else would end up under one with Manami. But what was he to do if they did? He couldn't really defend her, because then he'd be expressing how he felt. And if he did that, he'd look like an idiot. But then he could lose her for good.

Luckily, for him, it didn't seem like Manami noticed the mistletoe, because after dancing with Sho for four songs, the two of them walked back towards them, exhausted, tired, but happy. Daichi looked over their shoulders towards the archway leading into the main hall of the dormitory, and saw that several people had taken advantage of the mistletoes that had been hung up over their heads. Several people were making-out on the stairs. Manami didn't notice this either, but started having a rather interesting conversation with Judai about the great Duel King, Motou Yugi. She seemed to know a lot of information about him, and when asked how she knew so much, she answered, claiming that she had done her research. She also talked about someone who was supposedly his best friend and almost as good as him, someone named Jonouchi Katsuya. Judai didn't believe those stories, but they were quite interesting to hear. Soon, two hours passed by that were wasted on dancing, talking, eating, and hanging out at the party that it soon became time for Manami to go back up onto the stage and sing again.

Gaining a smile from Daichi and Judai, she walked up onto the stage as another song began, and she approached the microphone, and she sang in that same, sweet, gentle, harmonious voice, but this time, it sounded so much more beautiful with the words she sang, and the music that followed. Before she sang, she gave a dedication. "This song goes out to someone I truly care about, someone that I hope will be moved by this song as I am." This moved the crowd a lot, and several boys cheered at her, hoping that that someone was them. But Daichi knew well what she was talking about. As she began singing, he would feel his heart move with the words. (A/N: I apologize for this, but because the song is a big part of the story, I must put the lyrics down. Forgive me, and it is not an original song, but a song done by a band named Cold called "Cure for My Tragedy. Enjoy!)

"_Remember all the times that we used to play  
You were lost and I would save you  
I don't think those feelings will ever fade  
You were born a part of me  
I was never good at hiding anything  
My thoughts break me  
Do you understand what you mean to me?  
You are my faith_

_Won't you cure my tragedy?  
Won't you cure my tragedy?  
Don't take her smile away from me  
She's broken and I'm far away  
Won't you cure my tragedy?  
Won't you cure my tragedy?  
If you make the world a stage for me  
Then I hope that you can hear me scream  
Won't you cure my tragedy?_

_When I sit and think of the days we shared  
And the nights you covered for me  
Every little thing that I ever did  
You would stand by me  
Every time you cried, it would take my wind  
My heart would break  
If I could be strong like you were for me  
You are my faith_

_Won't you cure my tragedy?  
Won't you cure my tragedy?  
Don't take her smile away from me  
She's broken and I'm far away  
If you make the world a stage for me  
Then I hope that you can hear me scream…  
Can you hear me scream?_

_  
Won't you cure my tragedy?  
Won't you cure my tragedy?  
Don't take her smile away from me  
She's broken and I'm far away  
Won't you cure my tragedy?  
Won't you cure my tragedy?  
If you made the world a stage for me  
Then I hope that you can hear me scream_

_I can't take this anymore  
I can't feel this anymore  
Won't you take her pain and give it to me?  
Cause my whole life I've made mistakes  
Can you hear me scream?  
Can you hear me scream!"_

(A/N: Again, I apologize for that, but I thought you people had a right to at least read the lyrics of one of the songs Manami sings in this chapter. Forgive me, and I hope you enjoy the rest. Peace!)

As Manami sang this song, Daichi could feel the beauty of her voice transform into the aura of the room. Although the song was a rock song, it was peaceful to listen to, and he could see that almost everyone in the room had begun to dance or move to the song. It was so beautiful, so peaceful, and somehow, Daichi could feel his heartbeat pace with the music, and he could feel his face flow red. He didn't know why, but as he listened, he felt as if the words, the song, her voice, were directed at him. He tried hard not to think of it, but with each line, he would stare at her, hoping to catch her eye. However, she did not look at him but was staring at the back of the room, so as not to worry and become scared. He felt a little uneasy as she began singing the chorus in a rather high-pitched tone, but it made the song even more beautiful. She just seemed to glow in the neon lights that flashed in the room, her outfit seemed to sparkle, as if made by actual snow. Her body seemed to move elegantly, and her hair flowed like a cape behind her. As she came close to the ending of the song, he noticed several people were swaying their hands in the air, moving to the music. But as she finished, something happened.

Manami stopped looking at the room, and turned to the side of the stage, staring at her friends, or, to be more precise, Daichi. They at once made eye contact, and he could feel the intensity of their stares. She then walked off the stage as the whole room erupted into applause, but she paid no notice to it. As Judai, Hayato, and Sho started complimenting and congratulating her, she smiled charmingly at them, but looked up at him. He understood the hidden message in her eyes, but didn't follow through with it until later that night. He then realized that this night would be his only chance, his only opportunity to tell her how he felt.

About two hours after partying and dancing, it was suddenly realized that Manami had danced with each one of the boys, but one. She had fast danced with Judai, who had danced so fast it made her dizzy. She had danced with Hayato, who, although was a good dancer, was also clumsy and kept stepping on her feet. Sho was far too shy to slow dance with her, and when he tried to dance, it just seemed too adorable that someone so small and self-conscious would dance with someone taller and much more graceful. So that only left Daichi. This was a little embarrassing, because he had never danced with a before, and it felt awkward when Judai kept pestering him to dance with her. This always left him standing alone with his face burning red while he watched Manami dance with another guy. However, it had happened. She had come up to him after getting something to drink, her face hot and wet from either water or sweat of dancing.

"So, Daichi, you want to dance?" she asked him. Judai, Hayato, and Sho, who were all standing behind him, watching, started to smile and cheer him on, but he kept brushing them off. He looked at Manami, and saw how she smiled at him, how she seemed to radiate in the neon lights. She did look tired, but excited and happy. That was enough for him.

"Sure," he spoke. He accompanied her onto the dance floor, but then it happened. Instead of a fast song, which he had hoped for, a soft, slow-dance song had come on, and caused his face to grow red as he realized what he had to do. Manami smiled shyly at him, and then placed a warm hand on his shoulder.

"It's okay, Daichi, you don't have to if you don't want to," she spoke. But he realized that this would be the only time.

"No, I want to," he explained to her. After smiling pleasantly, she closed the gap between them and placed her hands on his shoulders in a friendly way. However, he had to place his hands on her waist, and this felt rather weird, but it was as if they fell into place perfectly on her. She didn't seem to mind, but as they danced, he noticed that her eyes did not leave his. There was no smile in them, no anger, and no emotion at all. They were blank, cold, dazed, yet held a faded light in them. She seemed to appear distant, lost in thought, but he saw that she seemed to glow even more brightly this way.

"Manami, are you okay?" Daichi asked.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine," she spoke. Her eyes still held that distant, dazed look in them. It was as if she had been hit really hard against the head, but her face showed no sign of injury. As if she was about to drift into unconsciousness. However, her body never went limp, never fell, but only seemed to glow as they danced.

"Manami, are you sure you're okay? You look lightheaded," Daichi spoke.

"I'm not. I'm just…" her sentence trailed, and as they continued to dance, he started to feel a warm sensation flow through him as her hold on his shoulders just seemed to tighten. "You wanted to talk to me about something?"

"No, I just…" Daichi had to fight to say it. "I'm proud of what you're doing."

"For what?" she asked.

"Giving up , singing tonight, being here…with me. I couldn't be happier," he spoke. Truth was, he could be, but this was a wonderful moment, so he didn't want to ruin it. Manami smiled sweetly, but didn't blush, like he expected.

"Thank you, Daichi. I'm having a wonderful time," she said, and then the song ended, as well as the dance. However, it was at once that they stopped, Manami began to grow weak, and she fell right in his arms. Her legs shook under her, not holding strength, and she went limp, slightly. This surprised him, and he held her as support.

"Manami, are you okay?" he asked.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine. Just tired," she spoke. She began to stand up again, but she had to lean against his shoulder to stay balanced. As they walked back to the others, they realized they had disappeared, and Manami began to grow pale. Daichi then thought of something.

"How about we get some air?" he offered. She smiled gratefully, and they walked out of the building to outside. The night was cool and dark, but seemed to calm them down. It comforted them, and Daichi saw his three friends hanging out just a few feet away, talking and arguing about something pointless. Manami smiled, and she felt the night air caress her body. She reached up and brushed back a bit of her hair behind her ear. It just felt so relaxing, and she sighed in happiness.

"This has been such a wonderful night, Daichi. I'm glad I came," she spoke gently as she leaned against the barrier of the doorway leading into the building. He smiled, glad that she did, and even more so that she was here with him. He grasped her hand, and she smiled at him, a light blush rising on her face.

"I'm happy that you decided to be here," he spoke, but whatever else he wanted to say didn't seem to come out. He wanted to tell her that he loved her. He wanted to tell her that every minute she was in his thoughts. He wanted to tell her that when he was around her, his body just seemed to pause and hesitate. He wanted to say everything that was in his heart, and nothing seemed to make sense to him.

"Daichi…" He looked at her, and saw that she was leaning against the banister, smiling at him sweetly, a light blush on her face. "You have been a real good friend to me, and I'm eternally grateful that you've been there for me."

"It's nothing, Manami, don't worry," he spoke. She had that same, dazed, distant, dark, cold look in her eyes, but they seemed far more dreamy now then ever. He then realized something was tickling the top of his head. He looked up, and at once his face flew scarlet. Above his head, a few inches, hanging from the banister, was decorated mistletoe. His heart started to race in his chest, looking at Manami nervously, and saw she was smiling even more pleasantly.

"Manami, I'm…I'm so…."

"Shh," she placed a finger on his lips to silence him, and he looked into her eyes as she closed the gap between them once more, and rose herself to his level. At once, her lips found his perfectly, and he couldn't pull away. So sweet…so gentle…so…soft….It was amazing. The way she seemed to entrap him with just one touch of her lips, and how she seemed to turn a gentle, sweet kiss to a forceful, passionate one was so amazing. This was no mere mistletoe kiss. It was so much more. He had said more things in the kiss then he could ever tell her as he returned it. She began to grow more excited, as well as him, knowing that she did have feelings for him, that she loved him. Before he parted his lips to allow her to tease him, he heard people cooning behind them, and he immediately pulled away.

Both of their faces were scarlet as they turned to the room filled with Ra yellow students, all staring at them, eyes wide with concern and admiration. Manami looked away from Daichi, trying to hide her full red face, and Daichi was just standing there, staring at the ground. A few boys started cheering and clapping for them. Some had even started whooping and yelling at him. "Yeah! Real nice, Misawa Daichi!" A few s were even cooning to Manami, and this caused her face to go painfully red. Someone had even yelled aloud, "That was a hot kiss!" This started to change everything. Manami began covering her cheeks with her hands, and turned around and ran the opposite way towards the Obelisk Blue dormitory. Daichi had seen tears seep through her closed eyes as she ran, and he realized that he had embarrassed her. He had to do something, but with everyone had now seen their kiss, they were expecting him to go after her. He couldn't, and he was stuck in the center of the crowd, like a sideshow at a sports game.

"So, Daichi, you were the one!"

"I can't believe it! Misawa and Akatsuki! Together!"

"Wow! I had never seen Manami look so happy!"

"Happy? She looked like she was in tears!"

"Way to go, Daichi!"

Daichi had had enough, he ran through the crowd of the room, pushing past students, and headed up to his room without so much as a goodbye to his friends, who had witnessed it.

* * *

FD: Although this is a short chapter, please forgive me for that, but I thought I should put it up because it came to me instantly. Anyway, like I said, please forgive me for those lyrics to the song, I thought they went well with the chapter, and the song that she sang reminds Manami of the one she loves, (which we all know is Misawa Daichi, right? If not, you haven't been reading this story and you need to stop not only wasting my time, but also yours.) Anyway, if you like, please review. I'm a little concerned, though, if there are problems, so please let me know. Peace! 


	9. Who Is Nami?

Chapter VIII: Who Is Nami?

* * *

_Why are the gods punishing me? What have I done to deserve this? I have served them well, I had lived a selfless life. So why am I being punished? Why have I suddenly become their sacrifice?_

A young girl was racing across the sands of the large desert, the sun growing hot and heavy on her back. Her dark skin glowed in the light, and her long black hair seemed to billow violently as she ran. Her dark eyes scanned the desert tiredly, and as her legs started to give way, she saw a dark figure standing only a few feet away. Her knees gave way to her weight, and she hit the hot sand hard, her body rebounding slightly, before at last coming to a still in the sand. She looked up briefly, her sight becoming unfocused and unclear, and her mind started to wander into the heat. The figure approached closer, and she could see the white of his dark, piercing, cold eyes. The color that has been haunting her mind for so long, dark lavender, and burning with a rage only granted once by the gods. She moaned as she shut her eyes, fading into darkness that seemed to become her home….

* * *

The next day was rather awkward towards most students as they were to depart from the island in the morning for their Christmas vacation. Misawa Daichi was among the group leaving, while Sho, Hayato, and Judai were staying. They were heading down to the docks together where a large ship was floating on the surface of the ocean. As the four of them ran down the hill, Judai and Daichi in the lead, they saw the large group of students boarding the ship, waving goodbye to their friends, and disappearing onto the starboard. Judai and Daichi tied at reaching the dock, and then looked up at the large ship. Judai then looked around, looking for any familiar faces, such as Tenjoin Asuka, Marufuji Ryo, Manjyome Jun, or Akatsuki Manami. As he thought of Manami, he looked at Daichi.

"Have you heard from her?" he asked.

"Heard from who?" Daichi asked. It was clear he knew who Judai was talking about, but was in no mood to talk about her. Judai completely ignored this.

"Manami. Have you heard or talked to her since last night?" Judai asked him once more. Daichi lowered his head in a depressed way, but didn't say anything. He hasn't talked or heard from Manami since last night, and he didn't blame her. He wasn't even so sure if she would come down to the docks to say goodbye.

After saying goodbye to his friends, Daichi boarded the ship, and walked onto the lower deck to see onto the docks to his friends. They had all ran up the hill, but weren't looking at him. Farther right on the hill leading to the docks, he saw her. She was different now. Manami was looking directly at him, her silver eyes cold and dark, her arms crossed over her chest. Her skin was paler, and her hair didn't seem to have as much impression. However, as their eyes met, her lips curved into a gentle smile, and he smiled back.

She wasn't mad, she wasn't upset. She was just confused and frustrated, like him. He didn't know where they would start now, but knew that once he came back, everything would return to normal. He just hoped Judai, Sho, and Hayato would treat her right. He turned, after waving goodbye to his friends, and disappeared into the hole of the ship.

* * *

The Christmas vacation seemed to be moving slowly for those who remained on the island. For Judai, Sho, and Hayato, they were trapped with homework and class work that they had not done. However, because of his laid-back attitude, and carefree personality, you can honestly guess that Judai pushed all of his work off until the last minute. However, they saw very little of Manami, who seemed to be paler lately. They didn't know why, but it seemed to happen a lot. Something was wrong with her, because with each passing day, she looked sicker and paler. Like as if something was bothering her or frightening her so much. So they thought of confronting her one-day. And they did….

On the day of Christmas Eve, Judai, Sho, and Hayato decided to cross the island towards the Obelisk Blue dormitory, hoping to meet Manami there. A few students who were staying behind informed them that Manami wasn't around, and then they had to run off as they were asking questions whether Manami and Daichi were together. Not even they knew the answer to that one. However, they did find her. Just not in the place they had expected.

* * *

It became late in the afternoon when they did finally find her. They had searched the whole island, until they finally realized the one place they had not searched was the abandoned dormitory. It seemed as creepy as ever, but even more haunting as the setting sunlight seemed to fall on it in a beautiful angle. Standing before the gates of the building was a girl, her long black hair billowing behind her in the wind, her cold silver eyes staring up at the building in a dreamy way, her body shivering, her face pale, and her body looking weak. Judai, Hayato, and Sho approached her, but someone had stepped on a twig, and this startled her.

She turned and stared at them, her eyes dark and cold, and then she gave a weak smile at them. "Hey, boys, what's up?" she asked as calmly as she could. It almost fooled them.

"Oh, Manami, what are you doing here?" Judai asked. He approached her and saw that she had a few cuts on her neck, and he had this slight idea of her cutting herself. But she wouldn't do that. But he couldn't help but bring that up. "How did those cuts appear?"

"Oh, I was climbing on one of the cliffs on the island, and fell," she lifted her arms, and he saw bruises and scratches on them as well. Apparently she was telling the truth.

"Okay, but what are you doing here? You know, the Abandoned dormitory is off-limits. You'll be expelled for going in there," Sho explained. "Me and Judai almost got expelled once for going in there."

"I know, and I don't care. I've wandered into the Abandoned dorm more than once, and was never caught," she explained.

"Why?" Hayato asked.

"It's where I feel most at peace," it was as if she wasn't talking to them directly, but more towards nothing, like as if talking to the shadows that crossed the grounds of the dormitory. She started walking past the gates, and the boys couldn't help but follow her, feeling as she would get in trouble. As the shadows of the building crossed over her, she seemed paler and weaker, like a ghost that haunted the building. Manami walked into the building, but the moment she did, a gust of wind surrounded them at once, and Sho jumped back in fear.

"There's nothing to be afraid of, Sho," Manami had spoken this almost too calmly. Her voice was starting to change. It sounded so much more mature, older, and stronger. It was different, yet somewhat comforting. It was as if another person was talking through her, another person was communicating with them while using her body. It was so different, so confusing, yet….

"Judai!" this brought Judai out of his thoughts as her cold, deep voice echoed to him. He had suddenly realized that they had entered the hallway where a picture of Tenjoin Fubuki hung on the wall. Manami paused for a moment before the picture, and then continued walking on, her body becoming completely covered by the shadows in an almost eerie way. Her hand suddenly rose and her fingers trailed against the stonewall in a perfect manner. "It's been a long time since I've been here…."

"What do you mean?" Sho suddenly asked, walking closely behind Judai. However, Manami didn't answer him. Instead, she walked towards the end of the hall, and then sighed in a rather depressed manner.

"She cares a lot for him. I've never seen her so happy…" she spoke gently to no one.

"Who? What are you talking about, Nami?" Judai asked.

"Manami…and Misawa…."

The boys exchanged looks. Did she just refer to herself as a third person? She sounded so strange now, so dark, so…gothic. But why? What happened to her? It has been going on since she stepped towards the building. Judai suddenly brought this up.

"What's going on, Nami? Why are you acting so strange?" he asked, firmly grabbing her shoulder, causing her to twitch, and turn around forcefully, a hand swiping him hard against the face. This sent him to the ground, and he saw in her eyes anger, rage, darkness, and any other murderous glares that were there.

"Nami! What the hell!" Judai yelled. It was as if she was possessed, and this scared him. It scared the others also.

"Hear me now, Yuki Judai! If your friend Daichi so much as hurts her at all, I'll slit his throat as well as yours," she spoke darkly and murderously.

Judai's eyes widened instantly at her words. He has never heard anything so threatening from someone who he thought was kind and nice. She suddenly turned and started to run off down the hall, and Judai felt scared. He wanted to run after her, but he felt that would only cause her to hate him more. He then stood up, and looked at his friends, who were both shaking in fear.

"We need to follow her!" Judai claimed.

"No, we don't! Did you not feel it when she slapped you! That girl's gone insane!" Sho cried.

"I don't care! That's Daichi's girlfriend! We need to make sure she's alright!" Judai argued, and he ran the corner and down the same hallway that she had ran. He saw her shadow stretch across the opposite wall before disappearing. He suddenly called out to her. "Nami!"

He suddenly saw her ahead, and she suddenly stopped after calling her name. He stopped a few feet before her, and stared directly into her cold, dark silver eyes.

"Who are you? What have you done with Manami?" he couldn't help but yell at her. But he was right. This wasn't Manami. This was someone else completely. Someone using her body to live.

"I am Manami, you fool. Just…another part of her," she spoke softly.

"No, you're not Manama. Manami's sweet, kind, gentle. She doesn't hit people! She doesn't inflict pain on other people!" Judai cried.

"No, you're right. She doesn't. But then again…you don't know what goes through her mind every day, do you? You don't know the emotions she feels each day, being criticized and mocked by her fellow classmates, being tortured everyday while her thoughts are occupied on her family. You know nothing about her, so how dare you try to judge me when you don't even know where I had come from!" the girl raged, her eyes piercing silver as she glared at him.

"I'm listening, though. How did you come to be?" Judai asked.

"Anger, rage, hatred, strength, power…different emotions being held back and hurting inside over her lifetime. When she held in the pain and emotions over the years, they began to grow inside her, growing painfully until she couldn't take it, but she couldn't unleash them. They continued to grow and hurt her over the years, and at last, when the thought she could be happy, the pain at last vanished. But then karma took a nasty turn, and that was when the pain flowed back tenfold. It hurt her so much that she just suddenly split…."

"What?" Judai was confused now.

"Her personality, her soul, her heart, everything that defined her, split. She became two different people at once. The kind, gentle, shy Manami that you know so well, and another form…another being. Someone that would stick up for her, someone that would…be the complete opposite. Someone who would fight for her, stand up for her, defend her. Someone that won't take shit from no one else. Thus, that person became me…Nami," the girl explained. "I am the anger and emotions that grew painfully inside her over the years. Problem is, when someone calls her 'Nami,' a name that brings back many painful memories of her father, she suddenly loses consciousness from the pain that I caused her for years, and I suddenly take over. But she won't remember what's happening while I'm in control. In fact, if she does remember, it'll seem like a dream to her. And that's how I want it to be."

"You really care for this girl, don't you?" Judai asked.

"Yes, I do, but mainly for my own life. I cannot survive without her. If she were to die, so will I," Nami spoke to him.

"So, how come you came out now?"

"Because this is the place where Manami is scared of most, and it is the place where I feel most at home. I don't why, though," it was as if Nami was a completely different person now. She wasn't the repressed emotions that had formed in Manami, and she wasn't this dark, murderous girl. Instead, it was as if she was a lost child. A child just trying to find where she belongs.

"Do you duel, Nami?" Judai asked. She at once turned to him as if surprised by what he asked in a pleasant way.

"Yes, I do, Yuki Judai. Are you challenging me?" she asked.

"Well…yeah. If I win, you are to leave Manami alone, let her live and stop controlling her!" Judai claimed.

"And if I am to win, you are to keep what I told you a complete secret, not telling a soul! Not Sho, not Asuka, and especially not Daichi!" Nami cried. Judai was surprised to hear her say that.

"I have one last question. Do you also hold feelings for Misawa Daichi? Or is that just Manami?" he asked. At once her face flew red, but her eyes held no answer. She was either embarrassed by this question, or she did have feelings for him. There was no way to tell, but only one way to find out. He had to duel her, but he was also curious of the difference between her strength and the hidden strength of Manami. But there was one thing they were forgetting. The duel disks.

Nami seemed to have noticed this, because a smug smile crossed her lips, and she ferociously kicked the wall beside her. Immediately, a stone moved towards the side to reveal a large, gaping hole, in which two school disks were lying on the ground of it. She picked one up and tossed it to Judai. "The students who used to live in this dorm left a lot of these behind. Some of them even once belonged to the missing students, like him…." She nodded towards the portrait of Tenjoin Fubuki. Judai looked from the portrait back to her, and watched as she placed the disk on her arm and reached into a small holster on the side of her left leg, pulling out a deck of cards. She then placed her deck in the slot and launched the disk, ready for a duel. Judai did the same thing, but he then paused when he saw that the shadows on the wall behind her were stretching and thickening around her. This looked familiar to him.

"However, because there is a deal along this duel, it'll become a Shadow Game. If I lose, the shadows will take me far away from Manami forever, never to return again. However, if you are to lose, they will make sure that you forget everything I told you. And no one will remember this duel if you lose," she explained as the shadows circled around the two of them, and Judai turned to see Sho and Hayato running towards them, but only to be separated by the shadows. He was both stunned and terrified to know someone who can conjure up a Shadow Game. However, once the darkness was summoned, there was no way out of it until it was finished. He was just pleased that his soul was not on the line, like before. At least, that was what he believed.

As the game started, they each held five cards in their hands, and Nami insisted Judai would lead her. He drew one card, and was surprised to find it being ELEMENTAL HERO BURST LADY. He placed it on the field in attack position and placed one card facedown. Then it was her turn. She drew one card, but didn't even look at it, which was impressive to him, because she immediately played it facedown on the field.

"I summon the Sprite Mage, Annabelle!" Nami cried, and sure enough she summoned to the field a monster that resembled a woman with long orange hair, blue skin that was covered by patches of sapphire fur, and small, cat-like eyes, but these were silver. The monster wore garments resembling those to that of an Egyptian High Priest. Judai was not worried by this monster, for its Attack Points were 1000, while Burst Lady was 1200. But then, of course, there was the possibility of it being an effect monster….

Judai couldn't take that chance. She had ended her turn and he had to attack this monster, and decrease her life points. He drew one card and called to his beast, "Burst Lady, attack the Sprite Mage!" Judai commanded the beast before him, also a woman, and she attacked the Mage, which let out an ear-splitting cry of pain as it was killed, and vanished from the field. However, he heard a groan of pain, and looked up to see the older girl clutching her chest in pain for a brief moment. It was so awkward, as if by attacking her monster, he was attacking her. He ignored this, and finished his turn. However, he wished he hadn't.

Nami drew another card and her silver eyes seemed to shine in the darkness, piercing through it, and into his body, into his soul. At once her eyes fell on him, and it was as if ice had filled his body. He was cold, shivering, and sharp, piercing stabs of pain ran through his body, numbing parts of it, and he almost fell to his knees from it. However, he listened and watched what she did.

"I activate the Magic Card, 'Sanctions of the Night.' This Magic Card allows me to draw another card from my hand, and if it has the word, 'Sprite', in its card name, I can automatically summon it to the field in attack position," she explained as the card vanished and she drew one more card from her deck. There were no more cards on her field, but Judai was more worried what was in her hand. Her face held no smile, no signs of what was to come as she looked at her new card. "Unfortunately for you, it is a Sprite card. Meet Sprite Archer, Bellanee!"

Another woman with blue skin appeared on the field, but this time she wore red armor, a bow and arrows, her hair was long and white, held high on her head, but her eyes were the same as the one before. Cat-like and silver, just like Nami's. Judai found this an interesting coincidence, but he also ignored it for he thought it was nothing. That was another mistake. This monster was also weaker than Burst Lady, at an attack strength of 800. Nami then placed two cards facedown, and ended her turn.

Judai drew one card from his deck, and then played it, POT OF GREED. He drew two more cards, and played one of them on the field, ELEMENTAL HERO SPARKMAN. He then activated his facedown card, FUSION SAGE. He took one POLYMERIZATION card from his deck and added it to his hand, and then reshuffled his deck. He then called on BURST LADY. "Attack Sprite Archer Bellanee, Burst Lady!" The creature obeyed, and once again the Sprite disappeared from the field after unleashing an ear-splitting screech that was twice as worst as the first one. Again, Nami let out a groan of pain, but this time, she was even panting, and a bit of scarlet blood was seeping from her left nostril to her top lip. However, what freaked Judai out was that she licked the blood away as if it was some delectable treat for her. She smiled as she tasted it, and let out an eerie, haunting laugh. Judai felt a shudder instinctively run down his spine, but he had to continue his turn.

"Attack, Sparkman! Attack her life points directly!" Judai cried out, and the creature did so. He attacked so viciously on the girl, it even made Judai wince in thoughts of the pain. She did not scream of pain, though. Instead, her laugh became louder, more haunting, more eerie, and almost demonic. Her laugh was mixed with the scream of pain, and her silver eyes were more piercing when his creature retreated back to his side. Nami was now, more than ever, scaring and terrifying the hell out of Judai, so he quickly ended his turn.

Her eyes were wide now, piercing, surging with demonic rage and power, a hungry, murderous glare held within them. Her face immediately went pale, like a ghosts, and her head twitched and moved on her neck in an unnatural way, cracking and popping in several places as she rounded it on her shoulders, the whole time laughing in that same demonic cackle. "This is the end of our game, Yuki Judai," she spoke evilly, her voice lower and also being echoed by a deeper tone, so it sounded like she was possessed. His eyes widened in fear as she held up a card to her face.

"NO!" he cried in fear as he at once knew what card that was. "NO! THIS CAN'T BE!"

"Oh, it is, Judai. It's the end of our game, and you will never remember this night again," she chuckled demonically, licking at the remains of blood above her lip. "I ACTIVATE THE MAGIC CARD, SPRITE INTERCHANGE!"

Her voice echoed in the darkness surrounding them, and Judai saw his BURST LADY glow a bright gold light. "Now, Burst Lady, come to me!" Nami commanded the creature, and it obeyed. It came before her, and she once more pierced into his soul with her eyes. At once, Burst Lady disappeared in a flash of red, and an archway appeared in her absence. It stood like an ancient, Japanese shrine archway, but beneath it was a large pool of black water. The water suddenly lifted and started to form figures in the blackness. Judai stared in horror at the fact he was going to lose, and at the beast that has been illegal in most tournaments around the world. A beautiful woman whose hair was long and black, whose body was dark sapphire, whose eyes were piercing, cat-like, silver. She wore beautiful garments that only one of high royalty may wear. She was the most beautiful creature that Judai had ever seen, and he felt it would be the last thing he ever saw.

"Meet the powerful Sprite Goddess Jewel, Yuki Judai! She'll be the last thing you see before the shadows engulf you!" Nami bellowed demonically, and at once she summoned her creature. "Attack, Sprite Goddess!" At once, the creature attacked Sparkman, and he disappeared, causing Judai to lose 1200 life points, which brought it down to 6800, while Nami's life points remained at 5800. Although her points were lower, she held the strongest monster on the field and had the advantage, as Sprite Goddess had quite a few special effects. And Judai knew she was going to unleash them now.

"I play the Magic Card, Broken Curse!" Nami spoke, activating a Magic Card on the field, the image holding a blond woman shining from her chest, and in the light a black figure was emerging with blazing scarlet eyes. "This Magic Card is equipped to Sprite Goddess, boosting both her attack and defense by 1000 points each turn, as long as I'm willing to sacrifice a card each turn from my hand and removing it from play!"

Judai was stunned by the fact she was able to activate such a Magic Card with such a high price. But she wasn't over. "And, thanks to my monster's special ability, I'm allowed to Special Summon any monster in my hand with the word, 'Sprite', in its name. Unfortunately for you, I have SPRITE WARRIOR FLUX and SPRITE DEMON MIORA! And my Sprite Goddess gains five hundred points for each Sprite on the field. And, thanks to another of her special abilities, if I'm able to sacrifice half of my life points--" (which will bring it down to 2900) "—My Sprite Goddess can attack you twice in one turn!"

Judai's eyes widened in fear, as the Goddess's power, which originally was 2800, had risen to 4800 before his turn had ever begun. And now she was going to attack him, and she would also attack with Sprite Flux, (whose attack is 1500), and Sprite Miora, (whose attack is 1400). And she did. Goddess attacked first, and she sent several black knives to him, each stabbing him with excruciating pain. Then the others attacked him, lowering his life points to zero. He lost the duel all in three turns.

He fell to his knees in exhaustion and pain, shaking with fear and horror, realizing he had lost the duel, and in a Shadow Game. Nami's monsters vanished from the field, and she approached him in a deadly way, her silver narrowed in a piercing glare. "Remember our deal, Judai. You swore that if you lost, you wouldn't tell a soul about me. And now I'll make sure of it. SHADOWS, CLAIM HIS MEMORY, AND BE SURE THAT HIS FRIENDS DON'T REMEMBER ANY OF THIS EITHER!"

Judai looked up in terror as the darkness tightened around him, and he felt his air catch in his chest as he was suffocated within it, and the last thing he saw were her eyes, piercing silver, dark, evil, and demonic, glaring at him from the covering darkness.

* * *

FD: Okay…I'm not sure if that was too much or too little, I just wrote it. I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while, I've been really busy with the holidays and everything. I just hope you people like this new chapter. It'll take a while for me to update, because I'm going back to school tomorrow, but I multi-task. I've got school, keeping my grades up, I'm on the Student Body, I do kick-boxing every Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, plus I teach the Kindergarten class at my school Art every Thursday, so I might be able to do it. Anyway, I'll get working on the next as soon as possible. Peace! 


	10. Field of Innocence part I

Chapter IX: Field of Innocence (Part I)

* * *

"_ATTACK, SPRITE GODDESS! SHOW HIM HIS FATE IN THE SHADOWS!"_

_The woman attacked so hard that blood poured from his body, and he fell to his knees, the shadows covering his body quickly, claiming him…claiming his mind…his soul….Piercing silver eyes shown in the darkness, glaring with darkness and malevolence of a demon….And that horrible laugh…dark…deep…malevolent…the last thing he heard before they took him away…._

Judai shot up in bed, sweat pouring down his face. He looked around, but found himself back in the Osiris Red dormitory, sunlight streaming in through the window as the clear blue sky was seen outside. The window was open, and calm, relaxing wind was blowing into the room from outside. Judai looked around, realizing that it was just a nightmare that he had, but it was faint and fading the more he was awake. However, as he pondered on the dream, a familiar voice called from the doorway, startling him.

"ANIKI!"

Judai was surprised by a small figure thrown at him, arms wrapping around his neck tightly as a ball of blue hair was covering his face, suffocating him.

"Sho! I'm okay!" he cried, trying to pull the smaller boy off. He looked to the doorway to see Hayato and Misawa Daichi standing there, smiling kindly at them. "What happened?" he could not help but ask.

"I'm not surprised that you don't remember. You've been out for three days," Daichi explained. "Manami was kind enough to bring you back here."

"What happened?" Judai asked again.

"Oh, Aniki, I was so worried! It was like you were in a coma!" Sho cried.

"What happened?" Judai asked again, although more irritable this time.

"You wondered back into the Abandoned Dormitory on the other side of the island, and you fell through the floor in one of the hallways. You fell unconscious, and Manami went looking for you, found you, and brought you back here. She was even kind enough to stay the whole night to make sure you were okay," Daichi explained. His face was a taint of red, and Judai was wondering if he had talked with Manami since he returned. He couldn't help but ask it.

"How is it between you two?" he asked. Daichi's face went redder at once, and he looked away in a shy way.

"Fine," he spoke quickly, but Sho smiled slyly and spoke for him.

"We caught the two of them at the docks, making-out!" he teased. Daichi's face went scarlet, both with embarrassment and rage.

"THAT'S NOT TRUE! WE WERE NOT!" he yelled at Sho. Sho laughed as Daichi chased him across the room, but Sho immediately jumped onto the top bunk in the room quickly, out of Daichi's reach. Judai was impressed to hear this, but he wondered if it was true.

"Were you guys making-out?" Judai asked Daichi.

"No, we weren't. We just kissed," he explained, trying hard to hide his blush.

"But we saw tongue!" Sho teased from the top bunk.

"SHUT UP!" the older boy yelled, swiping hard at the younger one, but missed. Then the older turned to the brunette. "We just got in last night, and Sho explained everything to us. I didn't see her then, but I saw her early this morning and she greeted me…well, with a kiss."

"She must've really missed you," Judai spoke.

"She didn't say," Daichi explained. "But I'm guessing she did."

Judai smiled in thoughts of wondering what went through that girl's mind when she was thinking of Daichi. Girls were weird, period, but this one seemed unique and cool. She didn't state her feelings point-blank, like most girls. She didn't show much attention towards guys, unless she really admired them, like Daichi. She was a cool girl to hang around with. However, something bothered Judai about her. It was like…something was wrong with her…something malevolent….

He couldn't speak to anyone about this, mainly because no one would believe him. However, he couldn't help but wonder whether or not she was who she seemed.

* * *

Classes presumed that day, centered on the fact that most students neglected to study or maintain remembrance of the work before vacation. However, more rumors were floating around the school, especially about Manami and Daichi. The news about their kiss at the Christmas party spread like wildfire, and before they knew it, people were coming up to them, asking questions and advice on relationships. They became known as the "Perfect Couple" of the school, even though they haven't been seen much together since school began. However, when the two of them had classes together, they would be seen sitting next to each other, but mainly focused on their work than on each other.

During first period of the first day after vacation, Judai swore he saw Manami smiling innocently in the desks behind him, her silver eyes sparkling with joy and grace. They were so beautiful, light filtering into them to make them resemble circular snowflakes. Although they were beautiful, they sent familiar shivers through his body, as if he had seen them in a way that would scare him. However, she seemed so happy now, so pleased with many things, it just seemed wrongful of him to think of her ever being malevolent. Second period, she sat next to Sho to aide him on some problems he was experiencing, third, she was active and talking to Asuka during that class. She seemed so much friendlier, so much more social. During Phys. Ed. that day, (it was the boys of Osiris Red and Ra Yellow versus the girls of Obelisk Blue and Ra Yellow), she seemed to glow in the sunlight perfectly. The game was Soccer, and so far, the girls were winning, thanks to both Asuka and Manami, who surprised everyone by being a great player at this game.

As the white and black ball was passed to Manami, she took off with it to the other end of the field, leading it between her feet and passing each player that came by trying to get it. At last, she came into the goal zone, and with a ferocious kick, it launched into the air, and while it was, she did a flip into the air, striking the ball hard with the back of her ankle, and it was sent past Daichi and into the net with a speed that surprised everyone. That won the game, and the girls, who were all cheering besides Manami, raced into the locker room. Manami hung back, pulling her black hair out of the tail she had pulled back so not to get in her face. She then turned to Daichi, who was picking up the soccer ball to return it to the basket inside the boys' locker room. He stood up, tucking the ball under his arm, and walked with her slowly to the lockers.

"You seem really happy today," he noticed, her smile glowing on her face.

"I am," Manami spoke. "I got a letter from my Uncle John."

"Really?" he asked, watching as she pulled a folded piece of paper from the pocket of her uniform.

"Yeah. He's just informing the situation I'm in, how my mother and brother are, and saying that they're begging that I come home," she explained.

"Why didn't you?"

"You know why. When I'm here, I'm safe. When I'm home, they can find me. I'm still in Witness Protection," she explained again. Her eyes were a bit distant as she spoke this, but her eyes were lifted when he leaned a little closer to her.

"At least I didn't go easy on you for this game. People would've thought that because you're my girlfriend," he spoke, a light blush fluttering on his face.

"Hold up! I'm your girlfriend!" she stopped in her footsteps, staring at him with surprise on her face. He looked at her with a sly smile, leaned closer, and closed his eyes as he gently placed a kiss on her lips. As he embraced her for this kiss, she started to shudder slightly, but returned it, only making it more aggressive. However, she pulled back once someone had walked by, her face scarlet, and she looked down in embarrassment. Nevertheless, Daichi leaned closer and whispered softly into her ear.

"Yes, you are my girlfriend."

* * *

"_There used to be a graying tower alone on the sea. You became the light on the dark side of me. Love remained a drug that's the high and not the pill. But did you know that when it snows, my eyes become large and the light that you shine can be seen…."_

As Manami sat by her bedroom window on the floor, buried within the confinements of her sketchpad, the moonlight streamed into the room from the large window that was open, the black sky sparkling with stars like glitter. She was humming along with the song that was playing from her stereo, a song that was as old as she, but far more beautiful. It was by a man named Seal whose voice seemed to last long and add majesty to any song he sand. This particular song was called "Kiss from a Rose," and Manami loved hearing it. Whenever she heard it, she would think of the happy and joyful moments in her life that have lasted in her memory.

However, she was more preoccupied with her artwork. She was drawing, not really something that she saw everyday, but more something that comes to her mind when she hears this song. A rose in a vase standing on a desk before an open window, the night can be seen clearly through the window, and the shadows dance across the room like people of the Renaissance. It was a beautiful drawing, and she was just putting the touches upon it, shading and adding the shadows where they were meant to be. However, as she looked at this picture, she thought of Daichi, and whether his feelings towards her were sincere or just trying to make her happy. She had never felt this way about anyone before, and it felt awkward to care for him so much while a part of her worried whether all of this was just a dream, a trick, a hoax that he was playing on her.

"_He really loves you…."_

Her head shot up in startlement to the voice. It came from nowhere, the room empty and barren besides her, yet that voice was so close and clear, like it was before her. Where was it coming from? It was so dark, deep, mature, like a woman's, but there was no one else there. What if she just imagined it? What if it was coming from the stereo? That's it. She just imagined it. Because she was so deep in thought, trying to remember the words and moments she had with different people, she just forced herself to hear it.

However, that night was not a pleasant night. When Manami finally went to bed, she found herself having nightmare after nightmare about her past, about her father, about Daichi, and about her friends. They seemed to repeat themselves like a broken record, repeating within her mind, and when she finally found herself having a pleasant dream, she would awake to the sound of her alarm, signaling the beginning of a school day.

* * *

_You're not strong enough…you'll never be strong enough…he'll knock you down; he'll hurt you to very inch of your bone…._

"_But I love him! I need him!"_

_He'll kill you…he'll see that he hates you, that you hate him…._

The girl raced across the room of the palace, her eyes wondering with fear and terror as with each step, she realized the fate she was in. She had done nothing. She had claimed nothing. So why was she wanted? Why did he hate her? Why did he want to kill her? Why did they betray her? It was like nothing she had done right mattered. She was, finally, seen by those that she wanted to see her, but not in the way she wanted to be seen. She wanted nothing more than to be with him. Nothing more than for him to understand her. Nothing more than for him to feel the way she does. At last that wish cannot be granted. She has been revealed to them by him. She has been betrayed by him. She is no longer a born victim of their laws. She is no longer an innocent soul that wished for freedom. Now she was the law, she was the chains that bound her, and she could not break away.

As she ran into the next room, the shadows darkened around her, watching and waiting patiently for her to fall. Although exhaustion and weakness had flooded her body, she could not allow herself to tremble and fall to them. She was a prisoner in the place where she had at last felt at home, and as she ran, she felt her body tire with each step. She at last came into another room where she was terrified by the sight of them. They were waiting for her, staring angrily at her with rage and hunger with murder. Hands grasped her body and pulled her away from the entrance archway. They pulled her to a chamber where the shadows bided her and dragged her into their suffocating depths….

* * *

"_Good morning, Manami!"_

"_Morning, Daddy! I had the weirdest dream!"_

"_Really? Tell me about it?"_

"_It was about this girl. She's running away from something…but I can't see it. It's just a shadow. Anyway, as she's running, she's crying, and bleeding…."_

"_Well, it was just a dream, Manami. It's not real."_

"_That's just it, Daddy. It felt so real…and so…like I've been there before. It was so strange…so real…."_

"Miss Akatsuki!"

Manami shot up in her chair, startled by the familiar, annoying voice of Chronos. His voice had struck a nerve in her, bringing her back into reality. Problem was…she didn't even remember what she was thinking about. Was it a memory? A dream? She couldn't remember. It just came quickly and vanished when she heard Chronos.

"Sir?" Manami spoke almost empty mindedly.

"Have you not been listening all this time?" Chronos asked, his eyes narrowed at her in an angered, frustrated way.

"Sorry, sir, I haven't," Manami spoke softly, confessing it a soulless way.

"Fine! Detention! Stay after class! Today!" he commanded and turned to his desk. Manami sighed and sat back down, staring at her papers and books. Everything was blank and strange to her now. The literature and writings within the book. She read them over and over at least three times, and they still didn't make sense to her. The mentioning of Trap Cards, Magic Cards, Monsters, Field Cards, Special Effects….What was all this?

She closed her eyes and tried to recapture it. Not necessarily the comprehension of the book, but more of what she was thinking of. The rest of the hour passed by, and not once did Manami so much as considered giving attention to the class. She just sat there, lost in thought, and eventually drifted into a subconscious slumber, not realizing it. It was until the echoing sound of the school bell struck her that she returned to reality from her subconscious dreaming.

As she watched her fellow classmates gather up their belongings and leave the classroom, she felt her mind wander once more, but not really to recapture a thought or dream, but more towards a memory. A memory of when she was little, just barely five-years-old, and riding a bright brown stallion, wearing a red cowboy hat and smiling down at a man…a man who held similar physical traits as she did…a man who always seemed to make her smile….

"Akatsuki Manami, can I have a word?" Chronos spoke up, once again breaking her from her thoughts.

Manami looked down at his desk, frowning sadly, and stood up. It was almost as if her body was moving on instinct rather than thought. Next moment she knew, she was already on the platform, in front of Chronos' desk, staring down at him as he worked on grading some papers. A few moments passed, and during that time, she began to grow that feeling in her stomach that as if she was going to be in serious trouble. She didn't understand why, but this feeling was not unfamiliar to her. In fact, it was well known and mutual for her to feel. Finally, Chronos' hand paused and hesitated over a paper that a student had submitted for grading, and looked up at her. For a brief moment, her silver eyes held no sign of life in them, but at last filled with that dark, yet innocent serenity that they always seemed to hold.

"Manami, you've been declining in your schoolwork suddenly. I've spoken with Kabayaman, Daitokuji, and Ayukawa, and they all confirm my thoughts on it. Your motivation and expedience in your work has suddenly diminished since we returned from Christmas break. I want to know, as well as John Abruzzi, as to why. Is something wrong? Has something been bothering you?" Chronos asked.

"No, sir," Manami spoke this almost coldly and soullessly. Like as if she wasn't really there, but her body was speaking the words for her.

"Is it your relationship with Misawa Daichi? Is that what's getting in the way?" Chronos asked.

At that moment, Manami's eyes opened wide in surprise, her face flowed an immediate red, and her whole body shook suddenly. It was so strange. She seemed so distant from him until now, and when he suddenly mentioned her relationship with Daichi, it was enough to not only surprise her, but enough to embarrass her completely. She just stood there, her face red from blushing, and didn't answer. It was Chronos who spoke next.

"Because if this relationship is becoming an interference with your schoolwork, I would suggest ending it. After all, one of my own star Obelisk Blue students having a relationship with a lower-class Ra Yellow student? The very thought of it…such dishonor! Such ignorance! Misawa is nowhere near as intelligent and talented as you are, Manami! He'll never compete with you!" Chronos spoke. "I would think you and Ryo were a sure thing! But no--you had to go and pick a Ra!"

"Shut your filthy mouth!"

Manami had at last snapped. She couldn't take someone insulting the very person that has made her feel safe all year. She couldn't take to hearing the cruel words coming from her professor's mouth. Tears burned her eyes as she yelled at him, her face remaining red, but her silver eyes holding tears and darkness of rage and hatred. Rage that was directed towards Chronos. She was not going to take him insulting Daichi like that. Never!

"You have no idea how wrong you are! Daichi is a wonderful, kind boy! For the first time ever in years, I feel safe! I feel like I can trust him! I know I can! In addition, I'm not going to listen to you insult him! He's smarter than me! Smarter than _you'll_ ever be! So don't you dare say things about him that you don't understand!" Manami yelled, holding back the tears in her eyes, but they still were revealed in her eyes. She was not willing to listen to anyone insult Daichi. For a brief moment, Chronos just sat there, staring up at her, and suddenly smirked.

"You love him, don't you?" he asked.

Manami's face went redder, and she looked down, as if she was ashamed of her emotions for Misawa Daichi. However, Chronos saw the answer in her actions, and that smirk grew into a smug smile.

"You are excused, Akatsuki, but I want you to become more focused on your schoolwork than on silly schoolgirl crushes, you understand?" he asked her.

"Yes…sir," Manami turned from him, went back to her desk to gather her possessions, and then left the classroom.

As she walked down the deserted halls, she suddenly realized what she had done, and what she had spoken. She had confessed her feelings to her dormitory head leader. Why? Was it because she didn't approve of him looking down on Daichi? At one time, he was considering of promoting Daichi to Obelisk Blue, but it was refused, because of Daichi's goal of becoming the number one duelist in the school. Was that why he looked down on him? Because he refused the offer? She didn't understand, but there were many things she didn't understand, and some of them she didn't want to understand.

The halls were quiet and lightly fluttering with falling sunlight. A part of her stared down at the courtyard through the windows, sighing sadly. She felt as if something strange was happening to her, something terrifying, even more terrifying and strange than puberty. It felt so unnatural, so burdening, and she couldn't help but feel alone now. She didn't understand why, and she wanted to, but then a part of her refused any reason or logic to these feelings she was having, to these…dreams…these…nightmares….

"Manami?"

She looked up almost at once to realize that she was on the floor of the hall, leaning against the window, and she looked up to see a familiar face standing over her. At first, she was startled to see him, but then smiled up into those dark blue eyes and broad posture. She at last felt that before her stood someone that she could talk to, that she could rely on in any situation.

"Hey, Ryou," Manami spoke to him. Ryou sat beside her on the cold ground and just smiled at her. He noticed she was clutching her sketchpad, and he wandered something. Before he even asked, she handed it to him. He started flipping through the pages, examining each drawing she had made. Each one was as beautiful and descriptive as the next, and one that caught his eyes amazingly was of the pier, near the lighthouse, where he would always stand and watch the sea or sky. He even saw a hidden detail of himself standing on the pier. He liked this one, and he liked the one after it, one containing three children whom he instantly recognized. One of the children, the tallest, was him, the smallest was Sho, and, to his surprise, the last one was a girl whom he instantly saw was her, Manami.

"You remember?" he couldn't help but ask.

"Remember what?" she asked.

"Um…nothing," Ryou spoke softly, hiding any evidence of disappointment in his voice. He was hoping that she was starting to remember now. That picture brought back many memories for him, but he wasn't sure if they did for her.

"I've been having these weird dreams lately, Ryou," Manami spoke softly, her voice sounding distant and far from him. He looked at her, and saw that her dark, deep eyes were staring up at the ceiling in a dreamy way.

"Really? Tell me about them," Ryou responded to her.

"Well…they change every night, yet they all have this similar…theme to it. Each time I have one, I feel lost and alone, and there's this sad…omniscience, and I can't change it. Every time I have one, I try hard to make myself change the dream, try to make myself happy, but it never works. I wake up from them, and I can feel myself crying in the darkness of my room," she described. These dreams she was telling him sounded more than just nightmares. They sounded like painful memories that she did _not_ want to remember.

"What's happening in the dreams?" Ryou asked.

"Different things. I see a child running in the darkness, I see soldiers standing before an archway, I feel pain I haven't felt before, and I…I see…all my friends, all of my loved ones, hurt and in pain…because of me," she spoke depressingly. She lowered her head, and Ryou saw tears rolling from her cheeks. He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, and he felt her body shake in his arms. He then heard her speak words that he never heard in a long time, sing a song that was more of a lullaby meant for an eight-year-old than a sixteen-year-old.

"_I still remember the world from the eyes of a child. Slowly those feelings were clouded by what I know now. Where has my heart gone? Trapped in the eyes of a stranger. I want to go back to believing in everything and knowing nothing at all…."_

"Shh," Ryou spoke to her, trying to comfort the young teenage girl. You're not alone anymore, Manami. You're safe now. Don't cry anymore, he thought, gently embracing her and stroking her hair. Deep down, he knew that her safety was never a guaranteed thing. At least now, he and her friends would be able to protect her even more so than he could before. At least here, when she was in pain or she had a nightmare, someone would be there to lend a shoulder to cry on, and to catch her when she falls. At least this time, there will be someone there by her side to tell her everything will be alright.

* * *

FD: Okay, I am completely, sincerely, and absolutely sorry about not updating in awhile. To be honest, I've been really busy since my birthday just passed, and that I've gotten into some serious trouble to where I couldn't be allowed to go on computer, have my iPod nano with me, or anything like that, so I haven't been able to update. In addition, to make up for the lost time, I've created this chapter and I hope you guys like it. Again, I'm really sorry, I've been in trouble, and I know that's no excuse, but that's the reason why I haven't updated. Again, I'm sorry, and I hope you guys will forgive me. Peace! 


	11. Blurry

Chapter X: Blurry

(This chapter is dedicated to the song "Blurry" by Puddle of Mudd, and it is a good song.)

* * *

The next couple of days were as confusing as ever. Rumors constantly flying about Manami and Misawa Daichi, while their relationship was hidden from visual eyes. They never kissed before an audience, they never hung out as much as they used to, and Manami kept wandering off to an isolated and abandoned area on the island to draw, while Daichi wandered off with Yuki Judai, Marufuji Sho, and Maeda Hayato just to hang out. Several times, Manami would either be seen with Tenjyoin Asuka or Marufuji Ryou, but that was to be expected, since she was a student in Obelisk Blue. However, the rumors continued to fly, and some were even about Ryou or Manjyome Jun. Although these rumors were both insulting and hurtful, Manami ignored them like as if they were leaves in the wind. What surprised everyone, though, was that, even though he acted like a jerk towards her before and harassed her, Manami was hanging out with Jun a lot more. They even seemed like friends now, and it was this that startled and infuriated Daichi, as he remembered that Jun was a total pervert to Manami once before, but she continuously assured him that Jun had somehow changed.

One afternoon, Manami was sitting alone on a cliff side near the beach, looking down at the ocean with silver eyes full of excitement and comfort. As she sketched in her sketchpad, she started to feel herself drift off into the sounds of the waves colliding against the side of the cliffs, and did not hear the soft thud of footsteps behind her, nor heard the light snicker. Suddenly, though, a pair of cold hands wrapped themselves around her eyes, and she cried out in surprise. However, a voice whispered in her ear.

"Guess who!" the voice hissed.

"Uh! Jun!" Manami cried out, pulling away from her new friend's hold on her. She turned and saw Jun standing behind her, laughing.

"How'd you know?" he asked.

"Easy. The smell on your hands reminds me of the blueberry pancakes Judai told me you tried to make this morning," she smirked at him.

"That stupid Judai!" Jun pouted, but then saw Manami giggling, and this made him smile. Every time he made her laugh, it seemed as if he had done something right, like curing the ill, but why? All he did was make one of his friends laugh.

Jun sat beside her and looked out into the ocean, smiling with comfort as the sun hit his face. Manami smiled at this, and looked out into the ocean. However, Jun spoke once more, startling the young girl.

"You know, you've changed a lot in only a month's time," he spoke.

"Huh?"

"You've become more active, you've been socializing a lot, and…I don't know, you seem to have this glow about you," Jun pronounced.

"Thanks, Jun," Manami spoke softly.

"No, I'm serious. You've changed so much. You're not as shy, you're not as alone. It's nice to see you outside and hanging out with other people," Jun spoke. "I mean, you do wander off to be alone, but it's nice to see that you're not as much of a loner as you once were."

Manami sighed in pleasantry to his words. She didn't understand why, but she understood what he was saying. She has changed a lot, and there was only one person to thank for that. He brought her out by simply being her friend, and now they were far more than just friends. She smiled in the memory of the Christmas party, seeing him in the moonlight, and she felt herself blush as she remembered the kiss that they shared right after.

"I know," Jun spoke. She looked at him in confusion. "I know that you and Misawa are together, and that the two of you are in love. I want to apologize about me acting like a jerk before, but I guess…I felt jealous when I discovered that you liked someone, and I wanted that person to be me."

Manami's smile quickly faded and she raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

"Okay, what do you want?" she asked suspiciously. Jun looked at her in surprise and false anger.

"Why is it that when I'm trying to be nice, people always think I want something!" he yelled.

"Because you usually do," she spoke.

"Very funny," he snapped at her, but he felt as if this time he spent with her would probably have some kind of effect on her. He didn't know, but all of a sudden, a feeling over went him, and he heard the most annoying voice he had ever heard. He turned, and saw a little yellow creature beside him, an ugly creature who disgusted him beyond all measures. Ojama Yellow.

"Hey, boss, what's up? Who's she? Your girlfriend?" Ojama Yellow laughed in his annoying voice. Jun backed away, trying to ignore the creature, but he jumped to his shoulder and started dancing on it.

"Who's your little friend, Jun?" Manami asked.

Surprised, Jun looked at her in confusion. She was looking at his shoulder as if she could see the little creature.

"Can you see him?" Jun asked.

"Yes, it's Ojama Yellow. He's cute," Manami spoke. Jun felt his face flush of all colors. Cute? What was going through this girl's mind? He was the most annoying, pathetic monster Jun had ever seen, yet he was a Spirit, and Jun was able to see Monster Spirits since he came back from North Academy. So, could she see them as well?

"Are you able to see Monster Spirits?" he asked her.

"Um…kind of, I guess. I've been seeing an awful lot of monsters these days. Just the other day, I woke up in the middle of night, and saw Sprite Goddess Jewel standing in front of my bed. She looked sad, but before I could say anything, she disappeared," Manami explained. "And…yesterday I saw a Hane Kuriboh following Judai."

"Yeah, that's his Spirit Partner, just like how I am to Boss," Ojama Yellow cheered on Jun's shoulder.

"GET LOST!" Jun snapped at the monster, and he did fade away.

"Why are you so mean to him?" Manami asked.

"He gets on my nerves a lot. Him and his stupid brothers, Ojama Green and Black," Jun spoke.

"Their Spirits, it's how they are. So, Hane Kuriboh is Judai's spirit partner, Ojama Yellow is yours…I wonder….Does…does Daichi have one?" Manami asked. This Jun pondered about, and then answered.

"I'm not sure, to be honest. He might, but I haven't seen one," Jun answered as honestly as he could.

Manami looked down in thought, and the two of them just sat there is silence for the remainder of the time they were there.

"Hey, Sho, I bet I can finish my food before you!" Judai cried.

"Oh, yeah? You're on!" Sho cheered. The two then started an eating contest, and soon, Sho gave up after eating too fast, which meant that Judai won. Sitting far from them at a different table was Jun, lost in thought of what Manami had asked him earlier. He didn't remember ever seeing a Duel Spirit around Daichi before, but for all he knew, he could have one. Hayato had one that was hardly ever seen. What if Sho had one? And what about Asuka? And Ryou? What if everyone had a Duel Spirit and they just didn't know it? Everything seemed blurry now that he thought of it, and somehow, he found himself wandering if Manami was okay as she led on. He doubted it, because she still had those dark, sad shadows in her eyes.

"Hey, Jun, what're you thinking about over there!" Judai called from the other side of the cafeteria. Jun looked up in surprise, and glared at Judai from there. However, Jun's thoughts continuously traveled to Manami's curiosity about Duel Spirits, and whether or not everyone had one. He even began to wonder which Duel Spirit was Manami's Duel partner.

* * *

_Run…run as far as you can…run as fast as you can…run into the sunlight…run into the night…and travel with the stars as you escape…escape from here….Here you are not safe…here you will never have comfort…here you will never have peace…._

_I've never had peace in my life, so why should I start looking for it now?_

The rain fell hard on the girl's body as she fell to her knees in exhaustion. She was told to run away from where her home was, to run away from the one place she thought she was safe. She felt the rain roll off her bare and bleeding shoulders, stinging the wounds with their icy touch. She could hear the roar of thunder above her, and flashes of lightning shot before her eyes, striking everything with gloomy, horrifying omniscience. She looked out into the hills, seeing the city as it once was, now engulfed in dark, burning flames that she had cast and caused onto it. She was nothing more than a host to chaos, nothing more than a vessel to house an indestructible power. She couldn't come back. She had to turn from here, turn from her home.

Closing her eyes, she prayed to the gods that they would lead, that they will take her away from here. She prayed that they would lead her to a safer, more secure place other than here. She wanted to be safe, to be warm, she wanted to at last see light where it never shown. She allowed her tears to fall with the rain and roll from her face. At last, in eighteen years, she broke down inside, wishing that some light will guide her, that a light will lead her not only to safety, but to warmth.

"_You are light…."

* * *

_

Manami laid on her bed, her eyes closed gently while she slumbered peacefully, but outside of her dreams lied the real world. A world where chaos of all kinds struck mercilessly, and a world where darkness will cover her immensely, cover her until she could no longer breathe. A world where there was no real light until her dreams became a reality. A world where she knew that the more she wandered into it, the more she dragged the ones she loved into the war zone. This world was no longer a division between Heaven and Hell, it was a division between light and darkness, good and evil, and it has caused the light, the good nature of humanity to drift away. That was how she felt each day.

She felt as if she was reaching out towards the light, the goodness of life, and hoping that it would save her, hoping that it would catch her, but the more she reached out, the farther it drifted away. As she slept in her bed, she dreamt of something she had never seen, never dreamt of.

She was standing on the edge of a cliff, standing over a dark sea, staring down at it. Her arms stretched out at her sides, balancing her as she prepared to take the lunge. Behind her, she saw shadows and strangers with piercing red eyes watching and whispering about her, and she felt their cold stares on her back. She knew that this was the only way, and that there was no other way. She wanted to protect them. She wanted them to see the light, something that she never saw. Something that should have come and saved her, but didn't. Now she was prepared to give it to them.

Her feet moved instinctively, and her body leaned forward as she fell from the edge and tumbled to the darkness. She turned onto her back in the air, and stared up at the cliff as she felt the wind sweep about her. She was scared, she was hurt, and she was waiting for the painful collision of the ground to strike her. However, she didn't feel anything. She felt her body somehow be caught by someone. She felt someone's arms around her, and she looked up to see who her savior was, but before she could see their face, she was engulfed within darkness, and suddenly awoke to find herself in her bedroom. She touched her face to discover that it was drenched in sweat. What's more, she also felt tears in her eyes. Why was she crying? Was that dream a nightmare? Or a vision? A vision of events to come?

* * *

During the days that followed, Manami began to act like her old self. She didn't talk as much to anyone, she started to pull away from her friends, and even once, reverted into a violent rage when Jun called her "Nami." A lot more now, people started to see tears in her eyes, but she wouldn't talk to anyone, especially not Daichi. One night, he found her outside of the Ra Yellow dorm, looking not only depressed, but hurt. When he went out to greet her, she ran from him, and ended up skipping school the next day. Ryou asked Asuka to continuously check up on her, make sure that she wasn't taking drugs, and see that she's well, and sure enough, Manami wasn't taking drugs, and she was fine. But there was no logical explanation for her unusual behavior.

However, at night people could hear her singing from the Obelisk Blue Girls' dormitory, singing sad and depressing songs that would sometimes bring tears to their eyes. One song that she sang almost dreamily, and it was later discovered that the song was called "Listen to the Rain." Manami, though, pulled even farther from her friends when they wanted to hear her sing, and she would refuse and run away from them.

One night, Judai and Sho were having a practice duel outside near the beach, and when they looked out, they saw someone standing on the pier near the lighthouse. Originally, Sho thought that it was his brother watching the sea, but when the light crossed over that person's head, they saw that it wasn't Ryou, but Manami. Immediately, Judai and Sho stopped their duel and ran towards her. When she heard them approach, she turned and prepared to walk away, but they both cornered her. Judai looked at her, backing into the lighthouse, and saw the fear in her eyes.

"What's wrong, Manami?" he asked.

"Nothing," she lied. They saw the confusion in her eyes.

"Manami, you've been pulling away from a lot of people. What's wrong?" Sho asked.

Manami smiled sweetly at him, and then looked at Judai.

"Well…Judai, can you show me…can you show me their world?" she asked. Judai was confused by her question.

"What do you mean? Show you what world?" he asked.

"Their world. The world of the Duel Spirits. I've been seeing them a lot, and I want to see them…I want to see how they live," she spoke softly. Judai smiled. This girl wanted to know something that she had never seen. Could that be why she has pulled away from them? Because she was exploring another world, searching for another world?

"Well, I can, but we're going to need to see Jun. He has, like, fifty Duel Spirits around him all the time," Judai spoke. He grabbed her hand and dragged her off the pier, pulling her towards the Osiris Red dormitory.

When they approached, they saw Jun standing outside of his room, being chased by three little creatures, one was easily recognized as Ojama Yellow, and the other two looked similar to him, but one was black, and one was green. Ojamas Black and Green.

"Hey! Leave me alone!" Jun yelled at them.

"Come on, Boss, we just want to play a game!" Ojama Black yelled, his voice was deep and slightly eerie for a little creature.

"Yeah! Seeing as how you disowned your two brothers, how about you hang out with us!" Ojama Yellow cried.

"I didn't disown my brothers! They're both just jerks!" Jun yelled.

"Kind of like you?" Manami called out.

Jun and the Ojama Brothers stopped and looked at her. Then Ojama Green spoke.

"Who's that?" he asked his brothers.

"That's Manami. She's the Boss's girlfriend!" Ojama Yellow cheered.

"She is not my girlfriend!" Jun yelled at them.

"You once wanted me to be your girlfriend," Manami pointed out, but that only angered Jun.

"YOU'RE NOT HELPING!" he yelled at her.

"I'm not trying to help," Manami shot at him.

"Oooh!" Judai and Sho cheered. Obviously, what she said was a burn to him.

After fighting for five minutes, Judai finally explained to Jun what Manami's situation was, and Jun invited them all into his room. At once, they were greeted by a crowd of Spirits gathered around Jun's bed, spirits of different monsters, different appearances. Manami was startled to see so many spirits, and it showed in her face, as her eyes kept darting to each different spirit, her face was a bit lighter, but eventually, that paleness was replaced by a light, wonderful glow. She started giggling, and eventually, the spirit of one of the monsters, a fairy, grabbed her wrist and started dancing with her all over the room. The boys looked on, now realizing that they have never seen Manami be so happy. Judai didn't even see her being this happy at the Christmas party. It was as if…being amongst all these Duel Monsters, she felt at home, she felt safe.

Soon, the other three joined in playing with the spirits, and soon Manami began singing for some unknown reason. Her voice was so light and gentle, yet how she sang was almost mesmerizing, and she seemed distant and in another world when she sang.

"_I am a question to the world. Not an answer to be heard. Or a moment that's held in your arms. And what do you think you'd ever say. I won't listen anyway. You don't know me. And I'll never be what you want me to be. And what do you think you'd understand. I'm a boy, no, I'm a man. You can't take me. And throw me away. And how can you learn what's never shown. Yeah, you stand here on your own. They don't know me, 'cause I'm not here."_

"Hey, I know that song! Isn't that the song that Sakuya used to sing?" Jun asked, calling from the doorway after chasing the Ojama brothers.

"Yeah! I can't believe you remember it!" Manami cried.

"Hell, yeah, I'd remember it!" Jun cried.

"Who's Sakuya?" Judai asked, playing with Hane Kuriboh and Sho.

"Her older brother. He's in a band, but he used to sing songs before he went into it," Jun explained.

"What song was that called?" Sho asked from the floor near the bed.

"Well, it's not Sakuya's original songs, he just liked singing it whenever he was home with Mother. It's called 'I'm Still Here' by John Rzeznik," Manami explained. "Sakuya and Mother never got along, and sometimes, when he was home, he would lock himself in his room and play his guitar and sing. Sometimes, when he would baby-sit me and Mikuyo, he would call us into his room and sing for us."

"Sounds like you and your brothers got along well," Ojama Green spoke from the desk on the opposite wall.

"We did. I don't remember ever having a fight with one of them, but then again, I haven't seen them in two years, so…." Suddenly, her voice drifted off sadly, and her hand rose to her mouth, as if she had said something foul and horrible. She looked down sadly, and then looked around the room, trying to pretend that no one had heard that. Throughout the time that she stayed and played with the spirits, she seemed distant and lost, but she still held those smiles and light in her eyes. However, she later left and returned to the Obelisk Blue Girls' dormitory.

As she headed back, she decided to take the long way back and pass by Ra Yellow dormitory. As she did, she noticed that not one light was on in the dorm, and she smiled cheerily up at the building. _Thank you for being there by my side, Daichi_, she thought calmly. She knew that in the near future, she would cause harm and pain to him, and to her friends, and she didn't want to do that. But what if that was her fate? What if she was meant to cause them harm? She didn't want to, she wanted more than anything to stop it, but if it was her destiny, then there was no stopping it.

A single tear sparkled in the moonlight within her heart, and streamed down the side of her face as she suddenly realized that she couldn't be with Daichi if she going to cause harm to him. She had to make a decision soon. Either be with him and cause him pain, or not be with him and let him be free of any misery. Either choice was going to hurt her, but she needed not to think of herself, but of the one she loves.

"_Either choice you make will hurt him as well…."_

"Who's there!" Manami called out, turning around quickly, looking for some source of where that voice came from. It sounded so familiar, and so close, yet no one else was around. The only other thing accompanying her was her shadow, and those shadows of the night. She still looked around while the voice spoke again to her. Still, there was no one else there.

"_Stop fearing for 'what if' and worry about 'what can.' You're so scared about hurting him and your friends, but what if it's you that ends up being hurt? If you plan on being in pain and suffering, at least don't let yourself suffer alone. Allow someone to be there to catch you."_

"I can't…I can't let them get hurt…I can't…I can't pull him…them, into all of this!" Manami cried, covering her ears with her hands, trying to block out the voice, but it still seeped into her ears, echoing like the howl of a wolf.

"_If you keep pulling away from those that try to help you, you'll be lost before the dawn! You need trust people! You need to learn to let them in!"_

"NO! NO! I WON'T SACRIFICE THEIR SAFETY FOR MINE!" Manami cried, tears running down her face.

"You're not sacrificing anything! Don't you get it! They want to help you! He wants to be with you! He loves you!"

"And that's why I can't be with him! I'll only cause him harm and misery!" Manami fell to her knees, and her body suddenly felt weak. So weak, that she felt as if she would never have strength again. She felt exhausted and tired. The world before her began spinning, the darkness of the night covering the light of the moon in her sight, and she suddenly couldn't breathe. She couldn't speak. She just felt so tired and hurt. Her body swayed on her knees and she fell forward onto the ground, darkness washing over her as she drifted into unconscious.

"_He loves you…."

* * *

_

"_I'm not sober all the time. You bring me down, at least you try. 'Till we see this eye to eye, I don't want you! I must be running out of luck, 'cause you're just not drunk enough to fuck, and now I've had it up to here. I don't, I don't want you! It took so long to see. You walked away from me when I need you! Wake up! I'm pounding on the door! I'm not the man I was before! Where the hell are you when I need you!"_

"Big brother! Big brother! It's me!"

A small little girl jumped up and down in the crowd of people, waving her arms frantically to gain the attention of the boy playing on the stage, singing and playing his guitar. Her long, silky black hair held up in pigtails by pink ribbons, her silver, saddened eyes looking up at him with pain and grief. She was barely four feet, while everyone around her was over five feet, so hardly anyone saw her. Yet still, she jumped up and down, trying to get his attention. She called out in the crowd, tears running down her face.

"Big brother! Big brother! Please, big brother, save me!"

Finally, the boy looked down into the crowd, and looked into the spot where she was jumping, but she doubted that he could see her. He then ignored her and continued playing. More tears flowed from her face, and she looked down in depression. The moment she fell to her knees and started sobbing, the band stopped playing, and the main singer stood up from his place on the stage, and immediately jumped into the crowd of fans. Before the child realized what was going on, the boy picked her up into his arms and carried her back onto the stage while she wept.

"It's okay now, Nami. You're safe. You'll be alright," the boy comforted her, and she stopped crying. She looked up into the teenager's face and smiled.

"Thank you, big bro!" she cried happily.

"_Wake up, Manami…."

* * *

_

Manami awoke to the soft and warm touch of sunlight on her face, and her silver eyes fluttered open slightly to find herself in a room she did not recognize. It was a room with walls covered with mathematic formulas and theories. At first, she felt like as if she was in the bedroom of an obsessive scientist, but then she saw the window staring down onto the beach. She smiled softly, feeling the warmth of the sunlight on her, but then she sat up and ran her fingers through her bangs. Where was she? How did she get here? And why…why was she so tired?

"Ah, good morning, sleepy-head!" cheered a voice from the doorway of the room. She looked up to see Daichi standing there, holding up a yellow tray of different assortments of food. He placed the tray down on the nightstand beside the bed, and looked at her with a warm smile.

"Where am I?" Manami couldn't help but ask first. Daichi could understand that.

"My room. I was returning from a walk last night when I saw you outside the dorm," he explained. Manami's face went red. She was in Misawa Daichi, her boyfriend's, room! She slept in his bed! Daichi noticed this, and laughed. "No need to worry, Manami, I wanted to take care of you. I even brought you up some breakfast from the cafeteria."

He referred to the tray. Manami stared at it briefly, and then looked up into Daichi's eyes, suddenly realizing just how lucky she was to have a guy like him for a boyfriend. She didn't deserve him.

"You're too good to me, Daichi," she spoke almost sadly. He noticed her tone, and sat at the foot of the bed, staring at her.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

She didn't know whether to tell him, or to just keep it in. She knew that if she kept it in, it would grow and continue to hurt her. But if she told him, he would be dragged into her problem, and most likely get hurt. And she never wanted that. But as she sat there in silence with him, she brought her knees up to her chest, and wrapped her arms around them while she starred down at the comforter covering her. Everything in this room…it had his scent. That sweet, hypnotizing scent that distinguished him from all the other boys in the school. Did she just realize it now, or has it always been there?

She closed her eyes, and as the sunlight streamed down on her, she not only felt the warmth of the sun, but she felt the warmth that Daichi gave her, that safe, warm feeling that seemed to emerge from nowhere, or rather from her heart. She opened her eyes, but only to be greeted by Daichi gently grabbing her chin with his thumb and forefinger, and tilting her head back slightly to where he met her with his lips. She winced and trembled from his actions, but as he kissed her, a tear rolled down her cheek. She knew that she loved him, and that he loved her, but she didn't know how to tell him when something was bothering her. All she wanted was to feel that warm feeling he gave her, to be lost in that delectable scent that he radiated, and to just be in his arms forever.

The moment he pulled away, wiping away her tears, she embraced him and started weeping into his shoulder. He embraced her back, although startled by her actions, and just held her.

"I don't deserve you, Daichi! I don't deserve your love!" she cried. Confused by her words, she pulled her away and looked into her tearful eyes.

"What are you talking about, Manami?" he asked.

She looked at him, and bowed her head in depression. She didn't speak again for the rest of the day, but this told Daichi, more than anything, that she was in far more pain than she ever was.

* * *

FD: Okay, second chapter for the day. I hope you guys like it. I just typed and typed until I felt it was enough. Again, I'm sorry I hadn't updated in awhile, but I have been, and so be happy. Because this chapter was dedicated to the song, "Blurry," I used some lyrics from other songs in here. I guess you can refer to this chapter as a musical one, but I'm not done with the story yet. Anyway, if you're curious of what's wrong with Manami, or what these different dreams mean, you'll have to wait until I update again. Peace! 


	12. Field of Innocence Part II

Chapter XI: Field of Innocence, Part II

* * *

The night air was fresh and cooling to the scent of the sea near the pier where Marufuji Ryou stood, watching the waves crash against the shore in a repeated grace and elegance that would astound any artist. However, in the distance, he heard a loud whirring sound over the sound of the sea. He looked up into the sky, and saw a small dark object in the dark sky, shining down a brilliant light that scanned the sea like the eyes of someone he knew. The moment the object approached closer to the island, he recognized what it was. A helicopter, heading towards the island. Usually when he saw something like that, it meant something serious. The last time he saw a helicopter like that was when Jun's brothers arrived for the duel against North Academy. So, what was going on now?

The helicopter flew over his head and towards the island, sending a wave of air onto him. Ryou turned and started to chase after it, wondering what was going on. On the other side of the island near the park, a group of teenagers were together talking and hanging out for the night. Amongst this group was Judai, Sho, Jun, Daichi, and Manami, all talking and laughing, while Manami was leaning her head against Daichi's shoulder. It was a moment of tranquility for once in the year, at least, if you exclude the fact that Jun and Judai were fighting over who was the strongest duel spirit, Hane Kuriboh, or Ojama Yellow. It was a fun and entertaining argument they were having, and Manami and Daichi just watched in comfort, leaning against the tree. The night just felt so relaxing now, so calm and peaceful, even with the constant arguments and fights arousing around them. But that was teenage drama for them.

Manami closed her eyes and was about to nod off when the loud sound of something whirring in the wind came to her ears. She looked up to feel a force of wind surround her. Several people yelled out in fear and surprise, darting out of the way as whatever it was lowered. Manami looked and saw that what was causing that whirring sound, what was forcing the wind to blow at such a violent force, was a helicopter. It was lowering onto a clearing nearby, and, in order to get out of its way, the five of them stood up and darted five feet away from it. Soon, the blades calmed and stood still as the copter landed perfectly in the clearing. Then the engine turned down, and the hatch opened. At once, Manami and Jun were greeted by two familiar faces.

Two older men each dressed in suits, one taller than the other did. The tallest one had black hair, a stern face, and slight goatee as his hair was sleeked into a rather interesting style. The other looked a little younger, his dark eyes stern, while he had lighter hair than the other did. Both of them had the same, cold, dark eyes. At once, Jun cried out.

"Chosaku? Shoji? What are you two doing here!" he called out over the clearing. Manami, stricken with surprise, grabbed Daichi's hand as he stood beside her. Chosaku's cold, dark eyes lingered on his youngest brother before moving onto Manami.

"Akatsuki Manami, we brought a visitor with us, as well," he spoke with a strong, powerful voice, like as if he was announcing it to a crowd of people other than just one person. He jumped from the helicopter and landed on the clearing almost perfectly, then swung his arm out to the opened door. From within the darkness of it, a man stepped out into the light of the night, and Manami gasped. Another man stepped out, and he had cold, piercing dark eyes and sleeked, thinning, dark hair. He wore a black suit, like the other two, but seemed a lot more cold and serious. He stepped into the clearing. Judai and Daichi recognized this man from once before when they spied on Manami.

"Uncle John!" Manami released her boyfriend's hand and ran forward at full speed, and collided with the older man, embracing him around the waist. The man didn't seem startled by this, which surprised Daichi, because he knew that would at least cause a full grown man to step back from the force. But he was unaffected by her grip.

"Hello, Manami," the man spoke, stroking her hair, returning the embrace.

"Oh, my God! What are you doing here!" Manami cried happily. Then she looked at Chosaku and Shoji. "And why did you bring these idiots?"

Jun and Judai snickered by her comment, while the rest of the group of teenagers standing around looked confused and startled by this. What was going on? Why was this man here? Why were Jun's older brothers here? Several questions ran through Daichi's head, but he didn't say a word, but just watched Manami greet her uncle.

"Manami, is there some place private that we can talk?" Chosaku spoke up. "We need to have a talk with the principle and Chronos. Something serious has happened recently."

At once, that happy expression on Manami's face quickly faded, and Daichi began to show concern for her. No one has ever turned such a happy moment into a depressing one that fast. However, it had just happened, and Manami looked at her friends pleadingly before bowing her head and walking away with the men. As she did, the moonlight hit on her face, and Daichi at once saw the sparkling tears in her silver eyes stream her face as she disappeared towards the school building.

"What was that about?" Sho asked. He looked at Judai with curiosity, and then looked at Jun. "Who were those people?"

"My brothers, Chosaku and Shoji. I wonder why they're here," Jun spoke.

"And Manami's uncle. Something's going on," Judai.

Jun was right, and all of them wanted to know what, but they knew that whatever was going on with Manami they couldn't get involved in. However, later that night, when Jun asked Asuka if Manami ever came back to the girls' dorm, but she answered that she hasn't seen Manami all day. This caused her friends to worry about her, and eventually, when they at last returned to their dorms to sleep for the night, Manami finally appeared.

As Daichi was returning to his room, he entered and looked out the window towards the beach. It was then that he saw Manami standing on the shore of the beach, staring out into the night. She wasn't wearing her school uniform, though, but wore a pure white blouse and a long, elegant skirt that billowed around her perfectly formed legs in the wind. Her long, black hair was held back by a white ribbon, but as the wind blew around her, the ribbon was released and taken with it, releasing her hair into a rush of black into the wind. She stood upon the shore, the waves crashing gently against the sand and coming up to her ankles, and then retreated back into the sea. As she stood there, starring blankly at the sea, she just looked like a white angel in the blackness of night, a beautiful, elegant angel that seemed to be lost in the very thing that she loved.

Daichi wanted to jump out the window and run to her, to reach on the shore and wrap his arms around her, not only show that he was there, but to show comfort. However, he knew that nothing he did would bring her safety and shelter. She was hurt in more ways than one, and she was not willing to open up to him, or any of her friends. It was just how she was. Hopefully, in the morning, everything that happened tonight, whatever she was told by her uncle or Jun's brothers, would eventually fade away, and she'll be happy again.

* * *

However, in the next morning, things were different. A lot of questions aroused about the arrival of Jun's brothers, and of the mysterious man who later referred to himself as Mr. Abruzzi. They did not depart the school, but stayed. When questioned about their reasons for coming, or for staying, they simply answered that they were here to keep an eye on someone. It became pretty obvious that that one person was Manami. During classes on this day, she did not appear, and whenever she was seen, she wouldn't stop to talk to someone or even glance at them, signifying that she heard them. She ignored everyone, kept a distance from Chosaku and Shoji, and hid mostly in her dormitory, away from the world outside of her.

On the next night, though, Manami's friends have suddenly decided that they've had enough of her secrecy, and decided to seek Jun out to see if he knew what was going on. They found him outside of Osiris Red dormitory, looking over his desk. The first to approach him was Ryou, who had this stern, angered expression on his face, which normally showed no emotion at all. Behind him cringed his little brother and his friends, including Judai, Daichi, and Asuka.

"What's up?" Jun asked suspiciously.

"Jun, we need answers. We know that since you're brothers are involved, so are you. Why is Manami so secretive now? Why are your brothers here? Who is that man, John Abruzzi? And…why is Manami acting as if she's in pain?" Asuka demanded. Jun looked at her, and then at Ryou, a bit startled by their sudden outburst.

"If you guys really want to know, you need to take a seat, because it's a long story," Jun replied. They obeyed, sitting around Jun. He sighed heavily, as if it was going to be painful to explain it to them, and set his deck aside. "I'll start at the beginning, when Manami was little—No, it goes back further than that. Beyond even her birth….I'm not sure if all of you know, but Manami has two brothers, like me, but they're not full-blood brothers. They're half-brothers, both born from separate fathers, and both under Manami's mother custody.

"Before Manami and Mikuyo, her youngest brother, were born, Manami's mother lived in Italy where she met Manami's father. It was there that they got married and had Manami, but there was something they didn't realize. The most infamous Italian mob, the Mafia, was in full-power there, and because of it, they had to move to Japan. When Manami was born, her father revealed something that terrified her whole family. Her father, and Manami, are inheritors of the blood of the mob boss, Al Capone…."

Everyone went silent at this. Even though he was famous in America, the name of Al Capone, or "Scarface," had reached all around the world. To suddenly realize that Manami was related to him was a huge surprise.

"What happened after her mother found this out?" Asuka asked.

"She divorced her father. It was pretty hideous, and three years after, Mikuyo was born, and two years after that, Sakuya ran away from home. Manami was barely ten when he left, and she hadn't even seen her father since she was two," Jun explained.

"I remember that. It was a horrible time for Manami," Ryou spoke. Sho gave him a confused look.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Sho, Manami used to grow up in the same neighborhood as we did. She didn't come out that much, but we hung out a lot and when her brother ran away, I would hear her mother screaming at the top of her lungs late at night. You don't remember that?" Ryou asked. Sho thought about it for a moment, and he did remember waking up in the middle of the night when he was little because a woman who was drunk was screaming out in the street outside their house. He even remembered seeing two children on their doorstep, crying and wincing everytime the woman spoke. It took him a while, but now he suddenly realized that those children were Manami, and her little brother, Mikuyo. He couldn't believe that he didn't remember that. He even forgot about the few months that Manami and Mikuyo had to live with them because their mother had gone crazy.

"Well, a year later, Manami reunited with her older brother and her father. It was the happiest moment of her life…while it lasted," Jun continued on. "Anyways. Because her father was a direct descendent of Scarface, he had to take charge over the Mafia. He tried to change it and stop all the killings and crimes. It didn't work, and when Manami came to visit him, she ended up entering a house that was filled with Mafia gangsters, but her father wasn't there. Thank God. But someone else was there, someone that was an innocent person caught up in the wrong situation, and the gangsters murdered him, and his wife and child that were there. Manami became a witness to three murders at the age of twelve. Poor girl suffered a lot at that age, mainly because when she testified against some of the gangsters, they placed a hit on her and her family, which placed under Witness Protection.

"My brothers were good friends of her father, and he made them promise to him that they would watch over Manami, that they would take care of her. Her family was separated over the globe, her mother and Mikuyo taken to an unknown city in America, Sakuya constantly traveling with his band, and her father…no one knows where he is, not even Manami. For two years, she's been transferred from family to family, changing schools every month, and never knowing whether or not her family was okay. Each week, she's fought against the legal system to have some type of communication with her father and brothers, but never did. She hasn't seen her family in two years, and when she was transferred to this academy, she at last felt that maybe things would change. It didn't, it only got worse.

"She talked to me just the other day, told me everything that she felt, everything that she couldn't share with you guys. She told me that since she gained friends that mean so much to her, she has been hurting. She feels that she'll never be able to share with you what has happened to her in the past. And to make things worse, a threat was made last week against her, signifying that the Mafia knows that she's here, at Duel Academy. That's why my brothers and that man came, to try to convince her to leave here so she'd be under better protection. She refused, saying that she was happier here than she ever has been. But that wasn't enough for them. My stupid brother is now trying to make her change his mind. Reason why we haven't seen her that much lately."

His brother? This brought up only more questions.

"Who is that man, John Abruzzi?"

"Which of your brothers is doing that?"

"Why? Why does she think we won't be able to help her?"

"Why does Manami sing sad songs?"

Jun sighed sadly again, and he looked away from them, towards the ocean. The ocean sparkled on the surface as the sun shined down on it, giving it the beautiful aura of nature. As it did, Jun was strangely remembered of the warm smile that Manami once had, of that wonderful glow she had, and of the kind, innocent sparkle in her eyes. That innocence that she once had was long gone now. Lost, forever, in a field of innocence.

"That man, John Abruzzi, is one of the leading gangsters in the Mafia who tried to help Manami's father. He's not her real uncle, but he's as good as one. He's protected and overlooked everything for Manami. He's her only line of connection to her family. She depends on him heavily just to be sure her family is well and that they're safe," Jun explained. "My brother, Chosaku, is real close to Manami, so he's trying to change her mind so she would be safer. I don't know why Manami thinks you won't be able to help, she just does. She's scared and confused, and in a lot of emotional and physical pain. Her only link to safety is through what she's used to seeing at home. She's used to hearing her brother singing, she's used to seeing her little brother playing in a different room, she's used to her drawings and pictures all over her bedroom walls. She sings songs just to feel at home, some songs that her brother sings, and some that she has heard over time. Songs that relate to her life, to her world. She just wants to escape from everything."

"Has she ever tried to commit suicide?"

Everyone turned to see that it was Daichi, the least likely person you'd suspect, that had asked it. Jun stared at him in shock for a brief moment, and then nodded.

"Yeah, she has, several times. Each time, she was saved by Chosaku, which is extremely odd. But with what she's suffering now, I think she's capable of attempting far more than suicide. I actually believe, if pushed to the limit, Manami might even kill someone just to escape from pain. That's what I worry about day and night. Will she pushed to that limit? Will she take her own life soon? Will she ever escape from her pain? She carries it like a burden, and won't share it with anyone," Jun spoke softly.

There was a moment of silence between all of them, and finally, when Jun looked up at them, he saw tears in their faces, or anger. In Ryou, who wasn't necessarily showing emotion, but he was clenching the grass with his fists, which were turning pure white. Asuka had tears running down her face, and so did Sho. Even Daichi had tears in his eyes, but he continuously wiped them away. Judai was looking down at the ground in confusion, and soon tears fell from his eyes. After a few moments of silence, Judai finally spoke up.

"We have to go find her! We have to tell her that we understand what she's going through! We have to tell her that she's not alone!" he cried, standing up on his feet.

Startled by his actions, they began to realize that Judai, for the first time ever, was right. They had to find Manami and make her realize that they cared about her, that she didn't have to carry the burden anymore. Jun stood up with them, a smile on his face. But first, they had to find Manami. The last time he saw her, she was with Chosaku, and that was never a good sign.

* * *

"Wow, Chosaku! Thanks for bringing me here!" Manami cried as she stared out into the horizon, just as the sun was setting behind the clouds over the sea. It had been a long time since she had been alone with Chosaku like this. She didn't even remember the last time they just "hung out." It had been a while, and Manami was happy that she got the chance now.

"Yeah, I bet it's been a long time since you've felt any peace at all," he spoke.

"I still don't feel any peace. But then again, there's no such thing," Manami spoke sadly to him. Chosaku looked down at her in confusion, then he smiled, gently patting a hand on her back.

"That's not the Manami I know. The Manami I used to know always looked on the bright side of things, always being optimistic and confident," he spoke.

"The Manami you knew is long gone," she replied softly. She turned from him and walked along the shore, the wind rushing through her hair and tossing it over behind her while she walked along, the waves crashing gently against the sand. Chosaku was confused by her words, but he remained silent as he walked along side her, his eyes over her head at the sunset. It was a beautiful night, he could tell. He wasn't sure how, but he knew that it would be. A slight, gentle sensation ran through his veins, and he recognized it from how he felt years ago. Years ago, when no matter what, she was always by his side.

He had promised her father that he'd protect Manami, but that didn't prevent him from growing feelings for the younger girl. She was probably one of the most beautiful and kind girls he had ever met. Once more, he enjoyed how she looked upon the world. How she saw it from an artist's eye, not from the normal, common eyes of a human. It was as if, whenever she looked at a simple object, she recognizes and describes its figure, its color, its shape, its size, etc. She was an unique girl, and that's what he liked about her. And unlike normal girls, always fiddling with make-up and trying to make themselves look good, Manami was naturally beautiful. There were no signs of pain and suffering on her. If a total stranger looked at her, they would think she was a perfectly healthy, happy teenage girl, instead of a girl who has suffered for fifteen years.

"Manami, do you remember…what happened between us a year ago?" Chosaku asked. Manami was quiet for a brief moment, but then she smiled and giggled.

"Yes, I do," she answered. She added a lit skip in her step, playing gently with her feet in the sand as she walked. Apparently, bringing up a memory had made her a little happier. She turned towards the falling sun, and smiled as the last bit of light hit her face, causing her to glow. The waves came up to them, and went past them, and then retreated once again onto the sea. For one brief moment, Manami felt as if the world was standing still, as if all the chaos and pain that she had been going through in the years had dissipated, and she was allowed to enjoy a single moment in life without worrying about anyone. In the moment of it, she allowed her arms to lift up to her side, so that her arms and shoulders were leveled. She closed her eyes, enjoying the wind on her face, and felt so much at peace now.

However, this moment was immediately ruined when Chosaku did something that not only startled Manami, but completely embarrassed and violated her. He had wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, and almost at once, Manami's face went bright red. Her arms shot down and her hands started prying at his, trying to make him let her go, but he only held her tighter.

"Come on, Manami. Remember how happy we were before? Why can't we have that same feeling again?" he hissed in her ear. Manami, shut her eyes, trying to block out his voice, but his cold hands around her…it not only felt so awkward, but it felt wrong. Thoughts of Daichi ran through her head, and she knew that she couldn't be unfaithful to him. She loved Daichi….

_But she also once loved Chosaku. How could she pass him up_?

No! This was wrong!

"No! Please, let me go, Chosaku!" she pleaded, not opening her eyes.

"Why would I do that? I remember how you used to love me holding you. I remember how we used to play. Don't you, Nami?" Chosaku teased in her ear.

Manami shut her eyes only tighter, her face growing redder, but that snapped at her. What Chosaku had just said, it was enough to unleash all of her anger, all of her pain, all of it, through herself. She was able to unleash it through…Nami.

She opened her eyes, and shadows danced within the silver depths, and almost immediately, she twisted in Chosaku's arms, and succeeded, but only ended up facing him. Upon his face was a grin that brought discomfort to her, and Nami winced in disgust at him. How dare he violate and make such a horrible move on her host? Apparently, Chosaku did not notice that something was wrong with Manami, because he leaned forward, wrapping his arms tighter around her, and snickered.

"Just one kiss, that's all I ask," he sneered. Nami tried to push him away, but he only came closer, not letting her go. At once, his breath was on her, and she tried to pull from him, but thoughts ran through her head. Not of her host, not of Daichi, but of someone else…someone she really cared about…someone that she once sacrificed her life for….

This distracted her, and the touch of his lips on hers was soft and warm, and he pushed into her, but at once she realized what was going on, and snapped back. Her hand came up and swung at him so fast, not even she caught the moment. She just acted on instinct of protecting Manami, no matter what the cost was. Chosaku fell to the sand on impact, staring up at her in surprise. In her eyes burned hatred and anger unlike any other. She appeared ready to kill him. Her teeth were bared, and, from his point of view, resembled fangs. As Nami stared down at this politician, a man who once brought safety to Manami, she heard a faint, soft and weak voice singing in the back of her head. Singing a song she had heard so many times before, but did not recognize it right away. It was a sad song that would once make her cry.

"_I still remember the world from the eyes of a child. Slowly those feelings were clouded by what I know now. Where has my heart gone? An uneven trade for the real world. Oh I... I want to go back to believing in everything and knowing nothing at all. I still remember the sun always warm on my back. Somehow it seems colder now. Where has my heart gone? Trapped in the eyes of a stranger. Oh I... I want to go back to believing in everything. Iesu, Rex admirabilis. Et triumphator nobilis, Dulcedo ineffabilis, Totus desiderabilis. Where has my heart gone? An uneven trade for the real world. Oh I... I want to go back to believing in everything. Away….Where has my heart gone? Trapped in the eyes of a stranger. Oh I... I want to go back to believing in everything. I still remember…."_

"Field of innocence…" Nami's eyes lowered sadly as she suddenly realized what was happening, what she was doing, and how her loved one would react. She turned from Chosaku, and walked away from him, heading back towards the Obelisk Blue Girls' dormitory. As she returned, her mind wondered to him, and wondered, what would he think of her by doing such a wrong deed? She wondered if she'll ever see him again. She even wondered if he was happy without her.

"Oh, Ra…. Poor Manami…."

With that, Nami went inside and took Manami's body back to her room.

* * *

The next couple of days seemed to last a lifetime to them, with the new information heavy on their hearts. They didn't see Manami at all during these days, and when they heard her name, some would turn, hoping to see her there. All of them wanted to talk with Manami and try to tell her that they not only understood and knew what was going on, but that they wanted to help. But she wasn't even in her room. She skipped all classes, and they searched all over the island to find her, but even then, she wasn't there. It began to become suspicious that she might have left the island, but they knew that she couldn't have when this was the only place she was "safe." But then the thoughts of what Jun's brothers wanted her to do came. They wanted her to leave, to go somewhere and be safe. What if she went along with it? No, she would have told them.

During one lesson in Chronos' class, Daichi was sitting in the far back, not really paying much attention to what was happening. He kept thinking about Manami and what Jun had told him. It's amazing to believe that a girl only a year older than him had experienced so much trauma and anguish in her lifetime. It was more than sad, it was distracting and it made him to focus most of his thoughts on how to fix such a situation. But it was out of his hands, and into the judicial courts. Just then, though, Chronos spoke towards the class.

"Oh, and in a week, we will have a surprise guest come visit the Academy for no particular reason. I want you students to be on your best behavior. If anything should go wrong, I will see to it that the principal will suspend you permanently," Chronos spoke darkly to the class, eyeing Judai and Sho in particular. Daichi shrugged. It was probably just some school board member in charge of overseeing the success of the Academy. The bell rang soon after, and the students left in almost an normal way. Once again, Judai and Sho had fallen asleep during class, and Daichi had to wake them up and tell them what they missed while they headed out towards the courtyard.

"In a week, huh? Wait a second, in a week, it'll be Valentine's Day," Judai pointed out, staring up at the sky. "Asuka told me about a party going down in Obelisk Blue for that holiday."

Daichi thought of that, and realized he was right. In a week, it will be Valentine's Day, and normally he would ignore such celebrations that were too immature, but ever since he got into a relationship with Manami, things have been different. He's still not all that focused about the female sex, but that was mainly because there was only one girl for him, and he was with her. But all of a sudden, he felt that he needed to do something extra special for her on this day, just to show her how much he cared about her. First thing, he needed to find her.

At that moment, he heard screaming and yelling. He and his friends looked over, and they saw a huge crowd surrounding a building on the other side of the island. It took them a while to recognize that building as the Obelisk Blue Girls' dorm. They ran towards it, and had to push through the crowd to see what was happening. Daichi looked up, and saw, standing over the railing of one of the balconies, was a girl. It took him less than a second to recognize her. Manami! What the hell was she doing!

"Oh, no! I think she's going to jump!" yelled someone in the crowd, and at once, Daichi and his friends responded on instinct of fear and concern. They ran forwards towards the girls dorm, and rushed through the building, noticing that no one was in there. Everyone was outside, trying to see what was going on. Daichi's only thoughts as he raced the levels were that he needed to reach her before it's too late. Before she jumps and takes her own life, and he loses her once and for all….

* * *

FD: I know, cliffhanger, oh, well! Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed that. I'll continue working on the next chapter A.S.A.P. I just got work done on my bedroom and I've got my television and bed back so I'm happy. Not to mention my stereo and 360 drawings that I can put up on my wall. I've also been sick lately, so I have to rest, but I was able to update this chapter, so I hope you guys like it. I know, a little out there and all, but it'll come in once I've finished it. Peace! 


	13. Surrender

Chapter XII: Surrender

* * *

The cool wind rushed up against Nami's face as she stood on the railing of the balcony, not paying attention to the crowd of people below, all believing that she was committing suicide. If only they understood what her plans were. She never planned to hurt Manami, she never planned on harming anyone. She approved of the relationship that Manami and Daichi had, she more than approved of what Manami was doing. But there were more important things on the line than her outlooks on _their_ lives. She needed to focus on her life, or what it once was. If she was to cause Manami to die, it would be she that dies, and Manami would survive without her. She was already causing her so much pain. She wasn't even sure if Manami knew that she existed inside her, that she protected and defended her all her life. It was she, Nami, that has kept this small and once innocent girl safe. It was Nami that made this sweet child strong and determined. Everything that has changed Manami over the years was because of her. But in return of this, Nami has caused her pain, and she couldn't handle seeing her host in so much torture. Whether she noticed it was there or not, it didn't matter. Point was, she was hurting Manami, and she needed to stop it. At least, if she was to cause Manami's body to experience death while she possessed it, at least Manami would be free from her control, be free from her bond, and she can live her life the way she needed to.

"Manami, stop!" yelled a familiar voice.

_No! No! Now they've ruined it!_

Manami blinked, startled by what just happened. One moment, she was standing on the beach with Chosaku, and the next…she was standing on the edge of the railing of her balcony! Her body at once went numb and started trembling. What was going on! Why wasn't someone coming to save her! Manami wanted to scream for help, but she was too terrified to open her mouth. She looked down, and at once felt dizzy, the ground and crowd of people below started to spin, and she heard several voices calling out to her. Only one caught her attention.

"Manami! Please, don't do it!"

Manami immediately turned her head, gripping the railing even tighter with her hands, to see, standing on the balcony were her friends…and Daichi. He was the closest, reaching out to her. There was fear in his eyes, and this made her heart to skip a beat in her chest. She had never seen so much fear in anyone's face. It was more than just fear. It was as if…for the first time ever, someone else was starting to care about her life rather than just their own. This caused tears to singe her eyes, but she held them back.

"Manami, please, just come back down, and we'll talk," he said, trying to comfort her. That's what she wanted, more than anything. "Manami, I know what you're going through."

"No…no! No, you don't!" Manami shot back at him. Rage was growing in her eyes.

This surprised her more than anything. Her eyes grew wide, and her face went pale, closing her mouth, startled by her words. But Daichi continued to talking. "Yes, we do. We all know. We know about the Witness Protection, about your brother running away when you were ten. We know about how you never knew your father until you were eleven. We even know…we also know that you're related to Al Capone!"

"You…you do…?" there was a soft tone in Manami's voice. It wasn't the tone of fear, it was the tone of pain and happiness all at once. She smiled sadly at her friends, now realizing that now…she won't have to be alone. They understood, they knew everything now.

"Manami, we understand everything now. We can help you, we'll be by your side all the time, I promise. Manami, you're not alone. You never were. Just come back down. We'll talk, we'll try to help you, but you have to let us," Judai explained, him and Sho standing by the doorway. Manami closed her eyes, and at once the tears flooded from her eyes and streamed down her face. She smiled, and at last, the warm embrace of the sun rushed through her veins. She then looked back up at her friends.

"Thank you," she murmured softly, and moved only an inch to get off the railing. But at that moment, her foot slipped!

It all happened so fast. At once, her foot slipped from the marble railing and went down, pain shooting up her body as it brought down with it her waist, and she fell at least three feet, fearing for her life that she would fall the rest of the four stories and die before she hit the ground. However, in a flash, someone grabbed her wrist from over the railing and held her tightly, suspending her in midair, preventing her from falling. Tears blinding her eyes, she looked up to see Daichi was the one who caught her. Almost at once, she felt how horrible she had been to him and her friends, the first people she had ever learned to trust besides her family. And here she was, nearly throwing her life away, and he was willing to save her.

Thoughts of her dream came to mind. She was standing on a cliff, about to jump, and when she did, she was caught by a mysterious person. Now she knew. Her hero, the one willing to save her life, was Misawa Daichi. She never wanted to die, but life without him would be even worse than that, and death would be the only way to relinquish the pain of it. But she never lost him, she never will. And she didn't want to die.

Judai and Sho raced to the railing, and helped Daichi pull Manami up and onto the balcony. At once, she fell onto her hands and knees on the solid floor of the balcony, and it was at that moment she broke down into immediate tears, started sobbing uncontrollably. Her body trembled with each breath, and there was nothing her friends could do but watch her cry. It was so depressing, seeing what they thought was a happy teenager break down into nothing more than a pain-filled, trauma driven, confused child. After a few moments of her crying, Daichi kneeled down to her side, grabbed her by the shoulders, and embraced her in his arms. Her sobbing had calmed down, but she was still crying, and he felt that when she cries, he needed to be there.

Soon, Judai and Sho left the dormitory, and Daichi insisted that he and Manami take a walk. She agreed, and the two of them headed down towards the beach, where they first realized that they did love each other. Manami scanned the shore almost in a loving way, and she gently touched Daichi's hand, but did not take it.

"Do you remember when we raced across this beach?" she asked him. He nodded. He did remember, but during that time, Manami was on drugs and wasn't usually herself during the time. It was still a nice thing to remember, because he felt something that night that he feels now. "I made a promise to you on that night, remember?"

Not only was Daichi surprised by her words, but he was surprised by what was going on. He had just saved her from committing suicide, and she was acting like as if nothing happened. She was so calm, so normal, and it was strange and unusual to him. More than anything, he wanted to talk about what had just happened between them, but for some reason, she was bringing up something that didn't really matter because it was moot. He remembered the promise, but it didn't mean anything anymore. He knew who she liked. He was her boyfriend.

"Yes, but it doesn't mean anything now. I know who you like," he spoke to her.

"True, but my words were 'one day I'll tell who he is.' Now, I said nothing about you finding out on your own, and I'm a woman of my word," she said with a warm smile. It was unusual, seeing her seem so happy right after a very dramatic experience. "Well, Daichi, I'm telling you now. The boy I like…no, the one I love, is you."

She touched his arm, and then pulled away, which caught his attention. She seemed so distant now. So far away, like as if her mind was never really there. She then began to sing a song under her breath as she approached the ocean, her eyes on the horizon before her.

"_She sits in her corner, singing herself to sleep, wrapped in all of the promises that no one seems to keep. She no longer cries to herself, no tears left to wash away. Just diaries of empty pages, feelings gone a stray. But she will sing 'til everything burns, while everyone screams. Burning their lies, burning my dreams, all of this hate and all of this pain. I'll burn it all down as my anger reigns 'til everything burns…."_

Jun's words repeated in Daichi's head, and it made him focus even more heavily on the situation.

"…_She sings songs just to feel at home, some songs that her brother sings, and some that she has heard over time. Songs that relate to her life, to her world. She just wants to escape from everything…."_

He hated seeing her unhappy, and he worried about her constantly. He didn't understand why, though. Every time he thought about her, he found himself blushing and hearing his own heartbeat. Every time he thought about her being hurt, he can't think straight and he acts on instinct rather than on logic. Every time he thinks about that brief moment before Christmas, he found himself wishing it would happen again. What were these feelings flowing through him? He knew that he was in a relationship, but he was a teenager. He needed to have his priorities in order. He needed to not focus on such emotions as "love" and needed not to focus on girls. But with Manami…it was different. He couldn't help but feel these things. He never harmed her, he never thought of her in any inappropriate positions or situations. A few times he would think about what goes through her mind, but that was all. Why was this? Was what he was feeling for her…true love?

"_I wanted to thank you…."_

"…_You're a real gentleman, Daichi…."_

"_I'm not offended, Daichi..." _

"_Why are you so interested, Misawa Daichi?"_

"_What about you, Misawa-chi?"_

"_Race with me. First one to the edge of the beach wins…."_

"_I know, I'm sorry!"_

"_I promise you, Daichi, one day I will tell you who he is. But until then, I'll keep it a secret."_

"_Yes, I'm fine."_

"_If I fall, you better catch me!"_

"_Misawa-chi, you're red. Do you have a fever?"_

"_Hold up! I'm your girlfriend?"_

"_You're too good to me, Daichi."_

"_I don't deserve you, Daichi! I don't deserve your love!"_

"_Well, Daichi, I'm telling you now. The boy I like…no, the one I love, is you."_

Manami's face at once went red when she felt a pair of arms wrap around her from behind, and at first she experiences Déjà vu, with what happened between her and Chosaku, but then she felt the embracing warmth and comfort that she gained from only one person. Still blushing, she sighs as she welcomes the embrace, and she looks up at him. He smiles calmly at her, and leans over her shoulder to kiss her forehead.

"No matter what, I'll be here. I love you, Manami, he spoke softly into her ear, and her face flows red once again, but she does not reject his hold.

"I love you, too, Misawa-chi," she spoke softly. He held her closer, take in the sweet scent of her perfume and her natural scents. It was so strange, so intoxicating, just holding her like this. She didn't seem like a normal, sixteen-year-old girl at the Academy anymore. She was so much more. Far more than he could understand. When he held her, he felt her body melt with his, he felt her scents fuse with those of the sea. She was just perfect, absolutely amazing, and he would never let her go, he would never allow harm to befall onto her.

* * *

The next few days were quite confusing and conflicting. Manami was constantly being pulled aside by other students and questioned about what happened to her. Daichi was even forced to answer a few questions that the staff and student body had. However, the true reason, the hidden meaning as to why Manami would perform such a feat was unknown. Not even she herself knew why she was on the railing of her balcony. She never experienced suicidal thoughts, she was never truly depressed, aside from when her family was torn from her. Her only thoughts were of whether or not they were safe, she would be happy, and whether she and Daichi would remain together.

One Night, though, something strange happened. Manami was the only student out past lights-out, and she was wandering along the shores of the beach, lost in thought. And as she walked, she sang a song she had just made up at that moment. As she sang, her voice, beautiful and mature, lifted into the air and was blown towards the school, like an angel's lullaby, comforting the slumbering teenagers as they drifted into their dreams.

"_Is this real enough for you? You are so confused. Now that You've decided to stay, we'll remain together. You can't abandon me. You belong to me. Breathe in and take my life in you. No longer myself, only you. There's no escaping me, my Love. Surrender. Darling, there's no sense in running. You know I will find you. Everything is perfect now. WE can live forever. You can't abandon me. You belong to Me. Breathe in and take my life in you. No longer myself, only you. There's no escaping me, my love. Surrender…."_

As she sang, she began to feel distant from the world. Almost to the extent where her mind began wandering to another place, another home, another time in her life. A time when everything was innocent, peaceful, and care-free. A time when she and her brothers were out of harm, out of danger, and out of the world. She remembered sitting on the floor of Sakuya's room, listening to him play "Emily" on his guitar while he sang the song. She remembered watching her little brother, Mikuyo, play with his action figures on the floor of the living room while she would read a book on the couch. She even remembered when the three of them left the house once and went to a Weenie-Roast on the beach, just to get away from her mother.

Now, everything was different. It's been nearly two years since she's last seen her brothers, and there was no way of reuniting with them until everything was at peace again. That's all she wanted. TO see her brothers again, to know her mother was okay, and…to know about her father. No matter what, he was always in her thoughts, morning and night. Every night before she fell asleep, she would pray to God that her father would be safe, and that he would be alright. And the moment she woke up, she would pray again that he would be okay. It was almost confusing how much she cared about him, when he was only in her life for a few years.

As she walked, she heard someone in the distant call out her name, and she turned to see him running along the shore of the ocean. She smiled at him as he caught up to her, his dark blue hair billowing lightly in the cool ocean breeze. His dark eyes were cold and emotionless, but his face held a smile that was warm enough to thaw out her heart.

"Hey, Ryou, what's up?" she asked him as he came to her side.

"I was looking for you. Apparently, hardly anyone has been seeing you alone, and that's when I've been trying to get a hold of you," he explained.

"So, you wanted to talk to me in private? Why is that?" she asked him.

It took a moment before Ryou spoke again. He took her hand, and smiled down at her.

"How about we take a walk? I'll tell you when we reach the lighthouse," he suggested. Manami smiled back, taking his hand, and the two of them walked together towards the peer and towards the lighthouse. When they reached it, Manami leaned against the wall of the lighthouse, staring out into the horizon as the light streamed from the building and circled the island and the ocean. Ryou smiled at her, and then approached.

"Jun told us everything, Manami. He told us about when you were little, about your mother, your brothers…your father. He told us everything, and I want to know if you remember…if you remember anything," he spoke to her. She looked at him, and then her eyes narrowed slightly, probably from exhaustion of the long day and the fact she was staying out late.

"What is it that you want me to remember?" she asked him.

"Remember me. Remember Sho. When we were kids, we were friends. You stayed at our house a couple of nights when your mother was on a rampage. You would even sneak into my room, just to stay with me and be safe, just to be away from your mother. Don't you remember?" he asked her.

She shut her eyes, and her lips parted slightly just to enjoy the air of the night. She tried to remember, but the time when her mother had gone insane was far from her mind. She barely remembered anything from then. Thanks to her selective memory, she only remembered far back to when she reunited with her brother, Sakuya. She didn't remember anything from before then. So whatever it was that Ryou was trying to make her remember was nothing but a blur. Probably because she blocked it all out.

"I'm sorry, Ryou, I don't remember anything from before me and my brother reunited," she told him. She looked away from him towards the ocean, and she sighed sadly. She then looked up at the sky, and smiled calmly. "I want it to rain so badly."

Ryou looked up at the sky, and realized that the clear, starriness of it will add beauty to anyone being surrounded by it. He looked at her, and at once he was engulfed by her beauty. The clear, beautiful night seemed to surround her magnificently. Her black hair billowed around her like a black cape of the night, her silver eyes sparkling like the moon, stunning anyone or anything that looked into them. However, Ryou was the one who grew victim to their gaze.

The moment they turned onto him, he felt his whole body grow numb and still. He couldn't think straight. He couldn't act quickly enough. Every move he made, every thought that ran through his head this night, didn't seem to be logical or rational. He found himself losing control over his body. He found his thoughts being surrounded by her. He couldn't help it, he couldn't control it. Could it possibly be? After all these years, it was happening at last?

He moved towards the girl, and looked directly into her eyes. Intensity surrounded the two of them, so strong was it that it drew his mind back even further. It brought to him a memory of when he was little. He woke up in the middle of the night to hear the squeaking of his bedroom window being opened. He remember sitting up in bed, only to see a small figure fall through the window and into his room. The figure wore a white nightgown, had long black hair, and lunar, silver eyes. He remembered how the figure would turn to him that night with pleading eyes, begging to stay the night with him. He would allow it, and she would end up sleeping with him, just for the night. Even though they were only kids, he understood that it is wrong and inappropriate for a girl to sleep in the same bed as a boy. But that never stopped them. And it didn't stop him at that one moment.

He was so close, that he could feel her cool breath on himself. There was so much intensity, so much static between the two of them in that one moment that he just lost control of himself. He pressed his body against hers and tilted her head back, running his index finger along her neck line. In one, burning, quick moment, he pressed his lips against hers, and grabbed the back of her head just to bring her further into the kiss. It was almost amazing how violent he was kissing her in that moment, but he knew he had to stop soon. She wasn't returning his kisses. Matter of fact, she was pulling away, trying to refuse and reject them. She pulled away at once.

"Ryou! What the hell!" she bellowed at him, pushing him away. She wiped at her mouth, while her face was pure red, from both embarrassment and rage. He, himself, was startled by his actions. Why did he kiss her? What was he thinking? He knew full-well that she was with Misawa Daichi, that she loved Misawa Daichi. So why was he kissing her?

"I'm…I'm so sorry. I don't know what came over me!" he tried to explain, but he knew that was not a good enough reason. There was no excuse for his actions. He had just sinned, wronged, a perfectly innocent girl. Now he felt unclean, like as if he had just swam in a puddle of mud. How could he have done something so horrible?

Manami turned from him and stormed away towards the beach, anger and rage purging throughout her veins. She was more than furious with him. She was upset, because she had denied, and betrayed, Daichi. How could she, herself, allow such a horrible thing to happen? She thought Ryou was her friend. If he was her friend, why did he suddenly do this?

She headed towards the dormitories, but instead of heading towards her own Obelisk Blue Girl's dorm, she headed in the opposite way. Towards the Ra Yellow Dormitory. For some strange and unknown reason, she really needed to see Daichi. She wanted to stay loyal to him, to be with him. It was so awkward. When she approached the dorm, and looked up to where the balcony to his room was, she suddenly felt a strange feeling of déjà vu. However, she didn't remember ever doing something like this before.

She climbed onto the branches of the tree beside the dorm, and when she got high enough to wear she could easily jump onto the balcony without flaw, she did. She landed perfectly on it, and smiled as she opened the sliding glass door. She stepped inside to find her boyfriend sound asleep in his bed, lying on his back, and she couldn't help but smile at this. She approached the bed and placed a soft hand on his arm. He stirred, and she pulled away from him.

He moved onto his side, but didn't wake up. She then did the unthinkable right then and there. She leaned down and placed a soft, gentle kiss on his lips, careful not to wake him up. However, her wish didn't come true, because the moment her lips touched his, he moved, and his hands grabbed her arms, pulling her into him. Her eyes went wide, but he released her at once. She pulled back, stumbling into the window, but looked to the bed, to find he was awake and looking at her in confusion.

"Manami…what are you doing here?" he asked her. She smiled shyly at him.

"I'm sorry for waking you. I just…I needed to be with you tonight. I didn't want to be alone. Especially with all the craziness going on. You don't mind, do you?" she asked him. He smiled, and shook his head.

"No, I don't."

He moved over in the bed, and she crawled into it with him. She didn't care about how inappropriate it was to sleep in the same bed as her boyfriend. She just needed to be with him. She needed to be with someone whom she cared about and loved deeply. He was just the one person who fit that description. As she laid beside him, he wrapped his arms around her and held her close. She smiled as she drifted into sleep, happy that she was with the one she loved.

* * *

The next morning turned out to be a difficult and conflicting one. The moment Manami woke up, she realized where she was and how she got there, and how improper it was. How could she sneak into her boyfriend's room and literally sleep with him? What would happen if one of the staff found out? She would get suspended! Or expelled! However, she realized that she was the only one awake. She stood up and approached the window to look outside.

The sky was as gray as snow with dark clouds covering the horizon like a dark blanket. It seemed so dark and gloomy in the morning now. In fact, it was far too dark for it to be full day. Perhaps it was still early morning, like before five in the morning. She realized what it was that woke her up as flashes of light broke across the sky, causing the echoing roar to later follow it. It was the thunder. That was what woke her up. For some strange reason, the moment that a second bolt of light flashed across the sky like a wink of an eye, she felt herself melt. She felt her heart relax in her chest. She felt her mind ease. Then, after the roar of thunder echoed across the sky, light tears fell from the sky and covered everything in a soft layer of water droplets. The rain fell lightly, and Manami smiled as she watched it fall. After a few moments, she turned from the window and went into the bathroom of his room.

She found the shower and sink, but was more interested in the mirror. She looked at herself in the mirror, and smiled. For some really strange reason, she had this light glow around herself, and she liked it. She closed the door and turned towards the shower. She started the water, allowing it to fall lukewarm. While the water ran, she undressed herself. She removed her Obelisk Blue blazer and allowed it to fall to the ground at her feet, then removed her undershirt, her skirt, unclasped her bra, and took off her panties, and got inside the shower, allowing the water to run down her body.

She stood under the water, lost in thought, for what felt like a half-hour, then she at last grabbed the soap and was about to wash herself when she heard the bathroom door open. At once, the soap slipped out of her hand, her heart began to pound in her chest, and she tried hard to conceal herself in the shower, although she was already hidden behind the doors. Inside, she prayed that they would just walk out of there and leave her alone, but she heard footsteps approach the shower.

_Please! Please, don't open it!

* * *

_

FD: Alright, that's all for now. I'll put up the new chapter soon, but for now enjoy this one. I would really suggest avoiding the next chapter, because it'll have lemon in it, but if you're one of those stupid morons who likes those kind of things, or you're one of those respective people who like to read the story thoroughly, by all means, read the next chapter, but I wouldn't. Peace!


	14. Thunder Roll

Chapter XIII: Thunder Roll

* * *

Manami pulled away from the doors as footsteps approached the shower doors, trying hard to conceal her naked body, while the warm water was running down her back and body. She shut her eyes, awaiting the moment when the doors would open, her heart racing in her chest, almost to the extent where she would have a heart attack right there and then. However, the doors didn't open, but a voice spoke out to her from behind them. A familiar, tired, yet calm voice. A voice that would normally bring warmth to her.

"Manami, is that you?"

"Daichi?" she responed to him.

"You're up early," Daichi spoke.

"The thunder woke me up," she answered him honestly. It did wake her up, but she was happy it was raining.

"Yeah, it pretty much woke everyone up. Kabayaman just came in a few minutes ago, telling everyone to go back to sleep. A lot of the guys freaked out when they heard it," Daichi explained. She couldn't hear his voice clearly, so she guessed he had his back to the shower doors.

"I bet it did. Is everything okay?" she asked him.

"Yes, I was just wondering if you were alright."

Manami smiled, but then Daichi asked another question.

"Why did you come to see me last night?"

It took a moment before Manami answered him.

"I didn't want to be alone. With everything that has been going on, I just didn't feel safe anywhere, not even in my own room. I knew I couldn't go to Asuka, because she didn't make me feel safe. Not like how you do," she answered. She heard him smirk, and smiled at herself. He didn't say anything more, but she heard his footsteps leave towards the bathroom door, and a sudden feeling filled her. She didn't want him to leave all of a sudden. Her face fell red, her body began to grow limp, and she wanted to call out for him. Soon these feeling became thoughts, and they then became actions.

"Daichi, wait!" she called out. She heard his footsteps stop, and then she didn't know what else to say. She had gained his attention, she had called out to him, but how could she express what she wanted and what she needed without souning like a freak? How could she tell him that she needed him? She didn't know how to tell him anything anymore. But then he spoke, his voice showing a sign of impatience.

"What is it, Manami-chan?" he asked her.

"I...I wanted to say...I...I love you, Daichi-kun," she spoke softly.

"I love you, too," he said. He was about to leave, but Manami didn't hear his footsteps. She guessed that it was too late to tell him anything. It wasn't like he was willing to even see the hidden meaning in her words. Through the sounds of the shower, she heard the roll of the thunder outside. She wanted more than anything to finish this shower and leave him. To head back to her dormitory and just bury herself within the blankets and pillows of her bed. She wanted to forget whatever happened last night. She wanted to forget whatever it was that she had done. She just wanted it all to end. She wanted everything to wash away with this water in the shower and wash the tears off her body.

In one, flashing moment, things instantly changed. She heard thudding footsteps on the the bathroom floor, and the shower doors flew open, startling the young girl. Manami was startled even more so when Daichi joined her under the water with his clothes still on, not paying attention to the fact she was bare naked. He slammed the door closed behind him, and wrapped his arms around her, becoming capturing bars around her torso, while leaving burning kisses along her face and neck.

"I need you, Manami. Forgive me, but I've never felt this way before," he gasped to her. He heard her gasp in answer through a kiss, and he parted her lips forcefully, slipping his tongue into her cavern. She moaned from the intoxicating, passionate kiss. It was so powerful that electric jolts went through her veins as he pressed her body against the wall, roaming his hands over her curves."I love you, Manami-chan."

"I...I love you, too, Misawa-chi," she gasped to him. Her body just seemed to meltaway to his touch, his fingertips burning flames to her skin, claiming every inch that was possible of her. It was so strange to her. She never felt this way before, this much passion, this much intensity, this much...this much love. It was like every touch Daichi placed on her would send shivers throughout her body, and every kiss he placed on her would send jolts throughout her soul. It was enoughto arouse her, and she began to tear at his clothing, wanting him to own her in a way that wasn't possible.

His mouth found hers for another time, but then it trailed down her throat, biting down gently, causing her to moan gently. He had never acted this way before. There was a being inside him, one that had been restrained for so long, was now suddenly free and more alive now than ever before. The two beings of him and Manami were no more, and replaced with two other, perfect, amazing beings. They were now two different being who were passionate, aggressive, desiring, lustful, and linked. Before he knew what was happening, he felt more aroused the more he kissed her, feeling her bare and soaked body pressed against his own. He couldn't believe what he was doing, and as much he wanted to, he couldn't stop it. The irony in all of this was that deep down, he didn't want it to stop. He wanted this. He wanted _her_. He loved her, and he wanted more than anything to express this love to her. He wanted to show her just how much he loved her, just how much he wanted and needed her.

A groan, passionate, low, and hungry, erupted from his chest, stifled by the busying actions of his lips. He knew that she felt it, though.

"Daichi..." she gasped for air as her lips broke from his, and this aroused him even more. His actions were then more controlled by the beast inside him rather than himself, the hungry beast that was in heat, his instincts--and he was willing to give it complete control. He pulled off his own clothing in less than a few seconds, throwing the soaked clothing across the bathroom, and pressed his body even more against hers. She moaned when she felt his erecting member against her center, but she couldn't control herself anymore. She allowed him to kiss her, to bite her, and it was then she realized just how vulnerable she really was in her arms--a feeling she was more than used to in a negative way, but it seemed like at this moment that there was no way for it to be anything other than completely positive and pleasurable.

The water ran down the both of them as they continued kissing, parting their lips and toying with each other, with Manami teasing him continuously by brushing her lips and tongue against his mouth, but never entering his cavern. This turned him on even more, and he continued to kiss her. Before he knew it, he was dragging his lips along her throat, causing her to whimper slightly, but as he did, he would feel her start to pull back mentally, emotionally, as if she was afraid of getting hurt. What was going through her head now? Was she scared of him? Was she worried of what was going on around her? Why didn't she trust him?

"Manami, stop worrying. I'll protect you. I swear it," he assured her, stopping his distraction on her neck and looking up to stare deeply into her eyes. Her full red lips formed into a smile, and she leaned forward, pleading him with her swollen lips. It took him less than a moment to be aroused at the fact that he now had a full hold on her, complete control. She was a willing puppet in his hands now. It was against his better judgment to take advantage of this, but his body wouldn't let him. He had given the monster inside him far too much control, and he was losing more with each passing second. He didn't understand what he was doing, he didn't know if it was right or wrong, he couldn't think straight, and he couldn't move in a way that he wanted to. It was as if his instincts and hormones had taken over him. Nothing seemed to make sense to him anymore. Nothing did, nothing would, and nothing was going to ruin it. Not one thing was going to ruin this moment. No one, not even himself and his logical thinking, was going to distract him. She was now officially his. He took advantage of this moment, but at the same time acted gentle to her, and cautious. He didn't want to move too fast for her, but at the same time his desires were burning everything inside of him. The more he prolonged it, the more these feelings would grow until they would burst from within him.

He started slow, kissing her lips passionately and gently, occasionally sticking his tongue into her throat, where he took pleasure almost instantly. He pulled away from her and kissed her neck gently, hearing her giggle, then he would licked slightly, and she whimpered, and then he would bite, and she would gasp in pain. The first time he sunk his teeth into her flesh she moaned very quietly, but then he would bite harder, and she would moan louder. He would even suck on her throat lovingly, acting like a familiar creature of the night that took pleasure on an innocent girl's neck. As he did this act, he would caress her arm soothingly, assuring her everything was alright, that he would be gentle and slow. His touch told her many things that his mouth was to busy to say. When he was finished on her neck, his face at once went red, and he pulled away when he realized how close he was to her.

He had never looked at her as he was now. He saw her in every light possible, and in every way possible. He saw almost every inch of her clear, curvy, beautiful, and full-grown body. It was hard to believe that she was only sixteen. At that moment, he suddenly realized that what he was doing was wrong, and that he had to stop now. He didn't want to cause something that he may soon regret. He never meant to hurt her, and he hoped he never will, but he knew what he was doing was wrong, no matter how much he desired her. He needed to stop, and now.

As he turned to leave the shower, she instantly grabbed his arm and pulled him back into her, wrapping her arms around his neck with a shy smile. With a forceful pull, she pushed him against the tiled wall of the shower space and started to smother him once more with kisses. She was now so consumed with ecstacy and was so intense with her lust that it aroused him again, and her hands roamed his body curiously, staying both appropriate and seductive. She pulled away only briefly to lean into his ear and whisper lovingly to him.

"You'll never hurt me, Misawa-chi. I need you, and I know you need me. Just...stay with me...for now..." She was pleading, and in pain, according to the sound of her voice. He gave into her longing, and allowed her to do the same to his neck as he had done to hers. However, her lips went farther than he expected.

She kissed the center of his chest gently, and trailed her lips down to his abdomen. She worked in a motion and style that would cause any boy his age, maybe even older, to react the way he did. Afraid, he pulled her up to his eye level, and pulled her back by the back of her neck into a deep, breathless kiss. His tongue was so deep into her mouth that their lips locked into a perfect motion, and it was so fiery it sent chills throughout his body. He pushed her back into the wall, and started to slowly crawl his hand over her chest. The moment he felt her breasts, he felt her shudder in his touch, but then she slowly melted when he didn't remove his hands. He could feel her slowly give in, and when he broke the kiss and moved to her throat, she moaned when he started to grope her.

"Daichi!" she cried out softly. It was so strange how she was reacting to him. She was both giving in and rejecting his desires. The more he touched her, the more she began to enoy it, but at the same time, she looked as if she was restraining herself. His hands soon moved away from her chest, but trailed south, down her stomach. Her face went red at once, and she whimpered a lot before he even touched her. He had never felt or seen anything like her. She was so soft, so warm, so amazing. He couldn't believe, even now when he was doing it, what he was doing. He kissed her in a gentle way, and caressed her before he placed his hand on her in that forbidden territory. The moment he did, both his and her faces were red, not just from the passion, but from embarrassment. It only turned him on though.

"Daichi..." she cooned softly, and kissed him to prevent herself from crying. He placed his hand even more on her. He never felt anything so wonderful yet so strange in his life. He loved her, he wanted her, and he was willing to do anything for her. If this was what she wanted, he would do it. His fingers trailed along her there a few times before trailing down her inner thigh. She sighed, apparently restraining herself again. Why was that? Why was she holding back? Tears were in her eyes, but she didn't allow them to fall. She just continued to kiss him and ask for more. And he obeyed, but he doubted in the way either of one of them expected.

His next move seemed to work entirely on insticts and hormones rather than on his thoughts. He found his hands placing themselves on her inner thighs and prying them apart, and, before he knew it, he had slowly inserted himself into her, making her cry out in pain. He had never heard her cry and moan like that. Tears poured down her face, and she was whimpering, shutting her eyes tight. He leaned forward and started to kiss away her tears.

"I'll stop. I'll stop, I swear," he promised her, but she silenced him at once with another passionate kiss, grinding herself on him.

"No, Daichi, don't...I...I love it..." she sighed, restraining herself again. He kissed her as he slowly grinded into her, and she gasped when he felt himself pierce something. He didn't realize what he had done when he saw tears slowly fall from her eyes. Masaka! He had taken away her virginity!

"Manami, I am so sorry! I'll stop!" Once again, she pleaded him not to stop with another kiss. This only edged him on even further, and he slowly thrusted into her, causing her to moan.

He went a little faster, and she moaned even louder. Soon, a wave of passion crashed into his body, and whenever it hit him, he'd find himself thrusting harder into her, causing her to moan again. With every wave that crashed into him, he would go faster and harder, sometimes both at the same time. She'd cry when he did, and more tears would fall, but he would keep going, and not once did she tell him to stop.

In fact, she would beg him to go harder or faster. She would even call out his name in passion and arch her back when he went too fast or too hard. She enjoyed every moment of it, though. She would even wrap her arms around him, to prevent him from pulling away. He now understood what this was, and why so many people enjoyed it. It was wonderful, but he couldn't tell whether it was the sex itself, or the fact it was the passion and love between them. He was praying deep inside that it was both, but mostly the love between them.

"Daichi! Oh, God, Daichi! I love you!" she cried out of nowhere, and at once, this aroused him enough to suddenly lose control completely. He grabbed her legs and lifted them up to his hips, and thrusted slowly, at first into her, but then at once went fast and hard into her. The fastest and hardest he went. When she wasn't panting, she was moaning, and when she wasn't doing both, she'd be screaming and crying. Her body would buck with his actions, and she would throw her head back in pleasure and pain as he thrusted. He then felt so much intensity and passion flow through him one moment that he thrusted painfully into her, and she cried out in pain, but after she did, he felt both himself and her release to each other, and he let her go and removed himself from her.

After that, they just looked at each other. There was so much sweat and water, and, in Manami's case, tears, flowing off them that they decided to clean each other. As soon as they had finished, a red-faced Manami turned off the water, got out, gathered her clothes, and got dressed in the closet. After a few moments, he returned to his room, fully dressed, and saw her as well, fully dressed. She smiled at him and slightly placed a kiss on his cheek.

"Thank you, Misawa-chi," she giggled before she left. As she rushed off, she hummed a light tune, but disappeared quickly to head back to her dorm.

* * *

"Manami, where've you been? We've been looking everywhere for you!" Momoe spoke at once the moment the three girls, Momoe, Junko, and Asuka, saw the young, happy girl walk into the hall, approaching her room. She looked up at them, and at once Asuka saw a light glow around the girl. Something had just happened to her.

"I was just out for a walk. A girl can't walk around on the island freely?" Manami shot at them. The three girls exchanged looks, but Manami ignored them as she entered her room and left them standing there, speechless.

The moment she entered her room, she turned on the radio, but at once a song came on. It was by an American rapper named Eminem, and the song was almost all-too familiar to her. It was called "_When I'm Gone_," and in the song, the singer was singing about how he left his wife and daughter to go into the music business, and feels that he's abandoning them. It almost brought tears to her eyes when she heard it, mainly because it made her think of her own father and how he had deserted her before she could even walk, only to be reunited with him before she was even a teenager.

_"Have you ever loved someone so much you'd give an arm for her? Not the expression! No! Literally give an arm for her?! When they know they're your heart, and you are they're armor?! And you will destroy anyone who would try to harm her!? But what happens when karma turns right around and bites you!? And everything you stand for turns on you, despite you!? What happens when you become the main source of her pain...?!"_

As the man is singing the song, he sounds like he's crying and trying to sing at the same time. It was an emotional song, at least to Manami it was. It reminded her everything of her father. She loved her father, and would give anything to see him again. She sat on the bed while the song played, and began to look on the times she had with her father. She even remembered the day she saw her father again. It was a coincidence, an accident, but a wonderful accident none the less. She was at the mall with a friend, taking starshots, and when she and her friend walked past a kioske, her friend points at a man talking to one of the workers at the booth. She points out that the man looks so much like Manami, and the two of them went up to him and just strike up a conversation with him. Eventually, Manami finds out, somehow in the conversation, that he was her father. It was one of the happiest days of her life, and she even remembered buying one of those arcade coins from an amusement park that said "_#1 Dad_" and gave it to her father. Now he kept it always in his wallet, never pulling it out.

_"When I'm gone, just carry on. Don't mourn, rejoice! Everytime you hear the sound of my voice, just know that I'm lookin' down on you smilin', and I didn't feel a thing. So, baby, don't feel my pain, just smile back. When I'm gone, just carry on. Don't mourn, rejoice! Everytime you hear the sound of my voice, just know that I'm lookin' down on you smilin', and I didn't feel a thing. So, baby, don't feel my pain, just smile back...!"_

"I'd give anything just to hear your voice again, Daddy..." Manami said to no one. She looked out the window as the song continued to play on the radio, and as she stared out the window, she felt her eyes burn with tears. Her hand subconsciously raised to her face and brushed away the nonfallen tears, trying hard to hold them in. Even though she couldn't see her father, even though she couldn't have any type of contact with him, there was a way to know how he was. There was one other person other than John Abruzzi who had contacts with her father, one person who was good friends with him...one person...who could help her...

* * *

"You want to _what_?!" Sameshima nearly jumped out of his chair at the sound of Manami's request. Behind Manami stood Chousaku, Shoji, and Abruzzi, all glaring at Sameshima. Standing in the doorway, cowering, was Chronos, tearing at a handkerchief.

"I would like to contact Kaiba-sama," Manami spoke again.

"I heard you the first time, but...do you have any _idea_ what you're asking for?!" Sameshima yelled again.

"Of course she does. She wants to contact Kaiba Seto, because he is one of the few people who are in contact with Akatsuki," Chousaku spoke up. Sameshima backed up when he saw the dark glare in his dark eyes.

"I understand, but I can't fulfill that request! It is impossible to contact such a busy man like Kaiba Seto," Sameshima said, trying to find an excuse. He wasn't sure who he was more afraid of, Kaiba or these goons in his office.

"Then let me do it. If he knows my father, he knows me," Manami spoke up. Truth was, Kaiba Seto was more than full aware of who she was. They had met a few times during the two years she had been separated from her family, and once or twice she would duel against him, although the duels were more of a blur to her than most other memories. She didn't remember what happened during then, or who won, because she somehow would black out right before they even started.

"No, I cannot allow one of this Academy's students to contact the owner and establisher of it! It's out of the question! No!" Sameshima snapped at her. Manami was now beginning to feel impatient, and before she even realized what she was doing, she was walking towards his desk, and pulled the phone close to her, taking it into her own possession. Sameshima's mouth dropped, as well as Chronos' from behind Abruzzi, as she pressed the top number on the speed dial side.

At once, the line on the other end started ringing, and soon a female's voice spoke up. "Kaiba Corporation. This is Shai, how may I help you?"

"Hello, Shai, my name is Akatsuki Manami. I'm wondering if I can get ahold of Kaiba-sama?" Manami spoke into the phone very politely over the phone's speaker, allowing everyone in the room to hear the conversation and voice on the other end, and Chousaku and Shoji silenced Sameshima before he spoke again in detestment.

"I'm sorry, Manami, but Kaiba-sama is busy at the moment. Perhaps you would like to meet with him in aweek? Say, on Wednesday the 15th?" Shai suggested.

"Hmm. That is an interesting proposal, Shai, but...NO! I demand to talk to Kaiba-sama NOW!" Manami shouted into the phone, and she could hear the other girl scream and fall. Sameshima and Chronos both jumped at the pitch of her voice. Staggering, the girl on the other end came back on the line and spoke.

"O-of course! I'll put him on right away!" she responded, fear in her voice.

"Thank you," Manami spoke. She sat on the edge of Sameshima's desk and crossed her legs, listening on the phone as there was a sharp click, and then the hold music came on. After a few moments, the line picked up again, and a stern, mature voice spoke.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Kaiba Seto! Guess who!" Manami cried playfully, sounding like a child, or an old friend. At once, the man laughed on the other line.

"Who else could it be? Only one person has been able to scare off my secretary more than I do," Kaiba laughed. "How have you been, Manami?"

"I've been great, how have you been?" Manami asked him cheerfully.

"Busy, as always. I haven't heard from you in awhile. What's new with your life? I heard that you joined my academy a while back," Kaiba spoke. "I couldn't tell you how surprised I was to hear that. I always faintly remembered beating you at dueling."

"Haha, very funny!" Manami was acting as if she was talking to a real good friend of hers instead of the CEO of an unstoppable, powerful, and influential company around the world. Kaiba laughed.

"I thought it was."

"Listen, I was wondering if you could do me a huge favor," Manami said softly. Kaiba sighed.

"How'd I know there was more to this phone call than a nice conversation?" he asked. Manami giggled, and, again, she heard him sigh. "I miss that."

"Miss what?" Manami asked him.

"That giggle. When you came over those few times, you would always laugh and giggle, and I guess...I started to miss that," he confessed. Manami smiled. To her, Kaiba Seto was a family friend. He had been friends with her father since her father got involved with the Mafia and started to seek advice from Kaiba Seto. Although she never saw or met Kaiba Seto until she was placed under Witness Protection, she was glad that she did. It was an honor to know one of the most famous duelist in the world and in the known history of Duel Monsters. It was because of Kaiba Seto that she was at this school, now.

"Well, I was wondering...is it possible you could contact my father?" Manami asked him softly, holding back tears the moment she mentioned her father.

"You're really missing him, huh?" Kaiba asked.

"Yes," Manami said tearfully. She hated admitting it, but it was very obvious to anyone who knew or saw her. She missed and loved her father a lot, and would give anything just to see or hear from him again.

"I tell you what, I'll call your father as soon as we hang up and talk to him. I'll tell him how you're doing, tell him how much you miss him, and I'll tell him to write a letter for you. Then he'll give it to Abruzzi when he goes over next time, and then you'll know how he is. How about that?" Kaiba suggested.

"Thank you, that would put my heart at ease," she confessed again.

"I know. Alright, I have to get back to work. It was nice hearing from you, Manami," he said.

"Same here. Thank you, Kaiba. Bye!" Manami hung up, and after a brief moment, she wiped the tears from her eyes. Then she got off the desk, turned to the adults, and smiled.

"Everything will be okay."

* * *

The next day, Abruzzi left the island to check in with Manami's other family members, leaving Chousaku and Shoji on the island to watch over Manami, although this did not relax the young girl. She was very anxious to hear from her father, and she was even more anxious and nervous when she saw Misawa Daichi. The moment she'd seen her boyfriend, her face would flow red, remembering what had happened to them those nights ago. However, nothing ever came up about that, although she would see his face flow red as well. Neither of their friends asked anything even remotely related to what had happened, and everything seemed to form back into its semi-normal self. However, madness occured once again.

Valentine's Day was drawing nearer, and, to all of everyone's surprise, so was Manami's birthday. It was strange to everyone because she had never mentioned her birthday to anyone, especially not to Daichi. The mysterious guest that would be coming also remained a mystery to all the students, even to those who dug deeper into figuring out who it was. Chronos, Sameshima, Kabayaman, Daitokuji, and Ayukawa were not giving any hint as to who it was. However, the mention of Manami's birthday came up far more than the guest coming soon.

Regularly, her friends would come up to her and ask what she wanted for her birthday, but she would refuse and comply that she wanted nothing. Daichi knew full well that that "_nothing_" was really code for "_I want to see my family again_." She had been becoming distant from them again, most likely because this would be another birthday that she would celebrate alone, without her family. However, her friends weren't going to let that happen. All of them decided to give her a surprise birthday party, but there was one problem. When was her birthday?

Such a mystery amongst the schools, and Manami never mentioned it. However, when Asuka came up to her, she beared a question that seemed to have nothing and absolutely everything with her birthday. It startled several people around with Manami's answer, though.

"Manami, wait up!" Asuka called from the stairs as she raced up them to join the other Obelisk Blue Girl student in front of the school doors. Manami smiled at her friend, and waited for her.

"Hey, Asuka. What's wrong?" Manami asked. Asuka, however, didn't look anywhere near upset or disgruntled, but rather pleased and content.

"I was just wondering...you know how every little girl likes a certain fairy-tale movie? I was wondering which one you loved. Me, personally, always was able to enjoy the movie of the Beauty and the Beast," Asuka confessed to her. Manami's face flowed a light red, but she smiled innocently.

"Promise you won't tell?" she asked her.

"I swear," Asuka promised.

"Alright. I was always a huge fan of Thumbelina..." Manami giggled shyly at this confession, but apparently a lot of people heard her. Asuka could understand that. It was a sweet and classical movie of a small girl no bigger than a person's thumb falling in love with a fairy prince and trying to find her way home, and trying to find her place in the world. The movie was a classic animated movie, like the Lion King, and Beauty and the Beast. Asuka could understand where a child may take interest into such a movie like that.

"What about now? What's your favorite movie now?" Asuka asked her.

Manami thought about the answer for that for a moment before giving it.

"I personally enjoy the movie '_Blooming Heart_.' That movie makes me cry," Manami answered. Asuka thought about that movie. It didn't catch a familiarity to her. In fact, she didn't recall ever hearing about such a movie called "_Blooming Heart_." Manami must've saw her confused look, because she started to explain the movie to her. "It's based around the life of a young teenage girl who grows up in a literal example of a ghetto. She has to take care of her three siblings while her mother is a drug addict and stepfather is abusive to her. She's the real parent in this family, tries to go to school and have a job at the same time. The moral of the movie was to learn to trust at least one person in your life. It makes me cry, because of the ending."

"Why? What happens at the end?" Asuka asked. She was getting interested in what Manami was telling her about this movie.

"The girl becomes so frustrated with her life and taking care of her family when she can't that she thinks of committing suicide, but holds back because there are too many people in her life that need her and love her. It's sad, because, at last, she finally places her trust in someone other than herself," Manami explained. There was a bright smile on her face, a smile unlike any other Asuka had ever seen. It was warm, comforting, hopeful, wishing, pleading, depressed, all at once. It was both a sad smile, and a happy smile. Like Manami knew of all the sad things that were happening before her life, but she was looking on the bright side of things for once in her life.

Manami turned and entered the school just a moment before the bell rang, and Asuka rushed after her quickly.

* * *

It's amazing how much change time can make. You've grown up a lot, Akatsuki Manami. You're no longer that shy, innocent, scared girl of the world. You're so much more mature, both physically and mentally. That is the reason why I must do this. This is why...

A man sat on a branch in the canopy of one of the towering trees near the school, looking down on the students who walked into the building. his cold, hard silver eyes lingering on Manami as if she was a prize to the champion of some competition. His clean-shaven head gleamed in the falling sunlight, while his black sunglasses reflected the light from his eyes. He grinned improperly as his hand reached into his pocket, and pulled out a black, small, .45 automatic pistol, and started loading bullets into it. As he did so, his eyes remained on Manami.

_Soon, Manami, soon...you'll learn what the meaning of revenge is..._

* * *

FD: Uh-oh. Okay, I know that this chapter had lemon in it and that it was unappropriate of me and all that crap, but would you believe it? It fits in with the story. I had to do it. It was the only way to tense things up a bit. Anyways, looks like Manami's in trouble, who's the guy with the gun, and who is the mystery guest coming onto the island? And what will happen to Manami for her birthday? Find out in the next chapter I'll put up soon. Thanks for reviewing, everyone! Peace!


	15. Reunited At Last

Chapter XV: Reunited At Last

* * *

In order to understand the pain that MAnami had gone through over the past two years, you would have to understand the bond between siblings, and the bond between a parent and child. Most people are too ignorant to even pay attention to how strong those bonds are. The love between a family can, in some occasions, become the most powerful and strongest thing a troubled soul can live on. Manami is one of those troubled souls, but she isn't alone anymore. Ever since she met Misawa Daichi and his friends, she has been taught more than just to trust them. She has been taught how to love again. How to trust people other than her family members, how to love people other than her father and brothers, and how to live a more pleasant and understandable life like how she does now.

A memorable moment was arriving soon for the young teenage girl. So memorable, it would leave scars and tears on the faces around her, and leave so much more on her. Although it does not occur for a few more days, the true essence of it began on one night. It was only a couple of days before Valentine's Day, the day that a huge party was to happen in the school, a dance, and a couple of day's before Manami's birthday. She laid on her bed, slumbering peacefully in her dorm room, while her radio played a soft song.

"_Have you ever seen such a beautiful night? I could almost kiss the stars for shining so bright. When I see you smile, I go-Oh! Oh! Oh! I would never want to miss this, for in my heart, I know what this is. This is what dreams are made of. This is what dreams are made of. I've got somewhere I belong. I've got somebody to love. This is what dreams are made of…."_

As she slept, she would expect a dream unlike any other to come onto her, but it did. A dream that both terrified her and eased her heart. A tear that both made her smile and brought tears to her eyes.

She was standing in a room of light, cream-painted walls, pictures of drawings hung up along the wall while photographs of a happy family. Photographs of two boys, one girl, and a full-grown woman. In others, there was another man in them, smiling, and holding the little girl in his arms. The room suddenly seemed bigger, and a dark, oak wooden table appeared in front of her. Sitting at the table were the two boys, the little girl, the woman, and the man, all smiling at each other and laughing. They were happy. At last, they were all happy. Manami smiled as she watched the family enjoy their dinner like a normal family, but then the room started to change. She was spinning through darkness, but then light hit the room, fading away the family and table, but brought her to a beach.

She looked out into the sea at the sound of familiar faces yelling and laughing and cheering from the ocean. She at once smiled when she saw all her friends, Ryou, Shou, Judai, Asuka, Jun, and Hayato in the water, splashing and playing with each other. Judai turned at once to her, and smiled.

"Come on in!" he called. At first, she thought that he was calling to her, but then she heard a familiar voice from behind her call back.

"We're coming!"

At once, Manami turned to see two figures race across the sand of the beach hand-in-hand. One she immediately recognized as Misawa Daichi, but the other…some what familiar. It was a girl with long black hair, lunar-shaped silver eyes, and she wore a one-piece, black bathing suit. That was her. That was her, Manami! She must've been dreaming! Or…what if this was a vision of the future?

At once, Daichi and the other Manami, still hand-in-hand, jumped into the water, sending a wave of water onto their friends. The real Manami just looked on, wondering what it was she was seeing. Could it all just be a dream? Or could it perhaps be a vision? Or…what if it was something she was forcing herself to see? Something that she was pleading to see? She didn't know, she wished it was a vision, or a dream. A dream that would come true some time soon.

For some reason, most likely out of shock and awe, Manami fell to her knees in the sand, and started shaking. In the back of her mind, a voice chanted to her. The voice was dark, demonic, and malevolent. It was so strange, like a voice from a nightmare.

"_Wake up, Nami! Wake up!"_

Nami? Who is Nami? Manami pushed off this thought and started to think of what will happen to her now, while her friends played in the ocean before her. She prayed that this dream would become a reality, that one day she would be happy with her friends and loved ones. She prayed that one day, she and Daichi would be happy together…forever.

"_Wake up, Nami…Wake up that darkness inside of you…."_

Manami could feel the tears in her eyes form, and she could feel them fall from her face. She wanted more than anything for this to become a reality. She wanted her life to be normal again. Whatever normal meant in this world. Everything was so chaotic, and it's taken her a long time to learn how to trust people, and how to love people again. There have been so many people in her life, so many that have hurt her, that have betrayed her…that have left her, that it's become almost near impossible for her to give trust into another person again.

"_Wake up! Wake Up, Nami! Let the World see you! Let them see your true strength! Your true power…of darkness!"_

_Please! Please…Just let this be real! Let this all be real! I don't want to leave! I don't want it to go away! I want it to stay forever!_

"…_Manami, don't cry anymore. You were never alone…."_

At that moment, Manami opened her eyes and awoke from the dream. However, the tears on her face showed her that it was more than just a dream to her now. It was a wish. A wish she had been longing for since she came to the academy. A wish of peace, happiness, and tranquility. A wish…that was made from her heart….

* * *

"GOOD MORNING, MANAMI!"

"AAAAAAHH!"

Manami nearly jumped out of her skin the moment she entered Daitokuji-sensei's classroom. It was so strange to hear so many voices echo the same three words at once. She looked around the classroom, seeing all the faces of the students smiling at her, and to see Daitokuji standing up in the middle of the class, also smiling while he stroked the ear of his fat, tabby cat, Pharaoh. Manami blinked, and then spoke after a moment.

"I'm sorry I'm late. I woke up late!" she said, giving herself an excuse.

"It's understandable, Akatsuki. I guess we could let it slip by seeing as how your birthday is in two days," Daitokuji explained.

"Um…actually, my birthday is in three days," Manami corrected. The class looked at her in confusion. Daichi, who was sitting in the back of the class behind Judai, smiled in victory. He knew that this little trick would work on her. She always had the habit of correcting people.

So, her birthday was on the fifteenth, not on the fourteenth. All there was left to do was throw the surprise party for her. As Manami sat at her desk, pulling out her sketchpad, (like always), the class resumed as always, and she buried herself in the book, drawing throughout the rest of class. After class, Manami was in a rush to leave and head towards her next class, but immediately, Daichi caught up to her.

"Manami! Wait up!" he called after her. She turned and smiled at him.

"Yes, Daichi?" she asked him.

"I was wondering…do you have plans on the fourteenth?" he asked her.

"No. But then again, it's pretty much difficult for anyone to have plans on any day of the week while living on this island," she pointed out to him, and he nodded in agreement.

"well, as you may have heard, there's a dance happening for the school for Valentine's Day, and-"

"Yes, Daichi, I'll go with you. You don't need to ask me. I'm your girl, remember?" she said. He blushed at the saying, but knew she was right. It was kind of ridiculous to ask her out when he already knew she was willing to go with him. As she raced off ahead towards her next class, he turned with a broad smile, planning her party in his head.

* * *

The day of the dance came almost too quickly for anyone. The auditorium of the school was decorated to look like a Valentine's Day festival, and a large stage was placed in the center of the room where a DJ stand was, playing music of all kinds. The night had fallen softly on the island, carrying with it the romantic aura for the dance. However, even though most of the students were now gathering in the auditorium to party and enjoy the night of Valentine's Day, eight teenagers were still not anywhere around. Girls, tonight dressed in gorgeous, long gowns and dresses, while some of the guys would dress in fancy shirts and tuxedoes. Not Judai and his friends. All of the guys had dressed in casual clothing. Judai wore a navy blue t-shirt, like the one he always wore under his blazer, and white jeans. Shou was wearing a more classy, white polo shirt and black tie, with a white pair of dress-pants. Hayato wasn't going to the dance for some reason. However, it was Daichi who made mouths drop. He was probably the best looking out of all three of them that night.

He was wearing a red t-shirt under a denim blue jacket and a pair of black jeans. He looked far different from how he normally did in the Ra Yellow blazer. He was even wearing boots, which surprised all of them. The moment Judai saw him, his mouth dropped.

"Woah! Who dressed you? A celebrity?" he asked. Daichi blushed at the comment, but wasn't focused too much on how he looked. He was more focused on his girlfriend's appearance. As the three of them walked towards the school for the dance, the saw two girls race across the courtyard towards the doors. At first they didn't recognize them, but Judai immediately recognized that long, sandy blond hair.

"Asuka!" he called out to her, and raced towards her. He didn't recognize the other girl, though. However, the other girl pulled away and disappeared to talk to someone.

Asuka looked amazing that night. She was wearing a light, blush pink silk dress that flowed around her legs and elegant body, her brown eyes glowing with the light pink eye-shadow and make-up. She had never looked anymore stunning and beautiful than Judai had ever seen her. He at that moment felt stunned, and tempted to ask her to allow him to escort her to the dance. He even found himself asking her that.

"Can I…can I escort you there?" he offered. She nodded, and took his arm while he led her to the doors and into the auditorium. It looked amazing that night. Almost breathless. So many Valentine decorations were hung in the room that it seemed to be the home of Cupid.

At once, a song started up, and Judai asked Asuka to dance with him. She accepted, and as the two danced, he saw several people he recognized dancing across from them. He saw Jun, dressed in a navy blue jacket and pants, dancing with a girl dressed in a red dress and had her dark hair tied in a bun. It looked like Momoe. He didn't see Ryou, but then he looked across the room, leaning against the wall of the auditorium, sulking, was Ryou, not appearing to be enjoying the dance.

A near half-hour passed, and all of a sudden, the music stopped. This surprised everyone, but they all looked towards the doorway when the echoing sounds of heels were heard in the auditorium. They all looked, and the whole room was filled with gasps. There was Daichi standing in the doorway, blushing, but smiling. But the surprise was who was at his arm. It was the girl from earlier. A girl that none of them recognized.

She was probably the most beautiful girl in the room, if not, close to it. She wore a shimmering, bright, pale white dress that shown so bright it looked as if it was made from the light of the moon. A white rose was centered in the middle of her chest like a brooch, her long, black hair curled and held up at the top of her head by a diamond tiara, and her face glowed with light, glittering make-up. She looked exactly like a princess of the moon. There was no one else dressed or looked anything like her that night. Not even the night itself could compare with her beauty in that moment. It was probably the most peaceful and beautiful moment of that week.

Suddenly, though, someone had jumped onto the stage and grabbed the microphone away from the DJ. The students looked up to see one of the Obelisk Blue students who was known around the school as Hishitowa Miyo, an expert in music and art around the school, announce to the dance.

"If I could have everyone attention! We are about to have an extreme honor with us right now! Apparently, it let slip that someone among us can not only sing, but is related to the famous Himono Sakuya! Let's give her a hand as she joins us up here and sing for us a song to start off the dance! Everyone, give a big applause to…AKATSUKI MANAMI!" he announced, and at once the whole auditorium erupted into applause.

"W-what?" Manami looked pleadingly at Daichi, who was nodding. She then turned to Asuka and Judai, hoping they would help her getting her out of it. However, each one of them were cheering her on. They were trying to make her go up there and sing, and she really didn't want to.

"Come on up here and sing for us, Nami!" Miyo cried from the stage. Manami went still in her tracks, her silver eyes growing dark and colder than before, but then she blinked, and a mischevious smile crossed her lips.

She crossed the room to the stage and met Miyo up there. She snatched the mike out of his hand and spoke into it. Her voice was deeper and more mature, almost like a full-grown woman's voice.

"Fine. You guys want me to sing for you, I'll sing. But I'm singing my own song. The one I am about to sing is called 'Before the Dawn,'" she announced to them. At once, a soft melody began to play, and she started singing. It wasn't, though, in the same, soft and elegant voice that they had heard at the Christmas party. It was more eerie, more deep and high-pitched. It sounded like the voice of an operatic woman singing for a horror opera. It was a beautiful voice, and somehow seemed to entrance everyone there listening to her.

"_Meet me after dark again and I'll hold you  
I am nothing more than to see you there  
And maybe tonight, we'll fly so far away  
We'll be lost before the dawn  
If only night can hold you where I can see you, my love  
Then let me never ever wake again  
And maybe tonight, we'll fly so far away  
We'll be lost before the dawn  
somehow i know that we cant wake again from this dream  
it's not real, but it's ours  
Maybe tonight, we'll fly so far away  
We'll be lost before the dawn  
Maybe tonight, we'll fly so far away  
We'll be lost before the dawn."_

After she finished singing, the whole auditorium erupted into applause, and Nami smiled at them. She then turned to Daichi and smiled broadly at him. She then started to sing another song. This was a little more happy and energetic than the last one, and as she sang, a lot of the students grabbed a partner and began dancing across the floor, but her voice still continued to entrance them. So much, that even a few people became dizzy as she sang to them.

"_I just can't help falling in love with you  
Wise men say only fools rush in  
But I can't help falling in love with you  
Shall I say would it be a sin  
Be a sin  
If I can't help falling in love with you  
Like a river flows _

_To the sea  
So it goes  
Some things are meant to be  
Take my hand  
Take my whole life too  
For I can't help falling in love with you  
Wise men say only fools rush in  
But I can't help Falling in love With you  
Like a river flows  
To the sea  
So it goes  
Some things are meant to be  
Some things are meant to be  
Take my hand  
Take my whole life too  
For I can't help falling in love with you  
Take my hand  
Take my whole life too  
For I can't help falling in love with you  
Like a river flows  
That's the way it goes  
I just can't help fallin' in love with you  
Like a river flows  
That's the way it goes_

_I just can't help  
Fallin' in love with you  
Like a river flows  
That's the way it goes  
I can't help falling in love with you  
Fallin' in love with you."_

She sang a few more songs, and then left the rest of the music to the DJ. She then rejoined her friends in the crowd of dancing students, and smiled at them. At once, Judai caught her around the neck, cheering in her ear.

"Oh! Oh, my God! Nami! You are amazing!" Judai cheered. Nami smiled darkly, already knowing this. But her mind wasn't on how much her friends were complementing her. It was still focus on her host, Manami. What would happen tonight? Would she feel alone like she always does? Would she give into temptation and try to take her own life? Every possible, horrible thought lingered on Manami and what Nami could do to protect her. Her main focus was especially on her safety. Her security, her peacefulness…her kindness, her glowing heart, her…her beautiful soul….

"Manami, are you okay?" came the voice of Daichi from behind her.

_Damn that Misawa Daichi!_

Manami blinked and looked up at her boyfriend with a cheery smile.

"Yes, I'm fine," she assured.

"Good. Because I want a dance," he winked at her, and took her hand gently as he dragged her to the center of the dance floor. It was Déjà vu all over again for them. It was as if they were right back at the Christmas party in Ra Yellow dormitory, dancing to the sound of a soft song, but this time was different. They both knew that the other liked them, they both were well comfortable with each other, and they both knew that this would be one of the many magical nights they would spend together. That was, at least, the hopes and thoughts of Misawa Daichi. As they danced, it was almost as if the two of them were being controlled by their love rather than on their minds. Manami would constantly place her head on his chest, and his hand would always wonder to her lower back. Everything seemed perfect for that one brief moment. Everything, including Manami's life at last.

However, that peacefulness and tranquil moment was shattered like falling glass as a terrifying and echoing sound roared through the auditorium, silencing the music, silencing any students chattering and talking, and sending horrible chills through each student's body. Everyone's eyes went wide, and Manami instantly pulled away from Daichi, fear surging through her face.

_**BANG!**_

Several girls screamed at the sound of the gunshot, and shattered glass fell from above them and rained all over the beautiful dresses and students. It was Manami, though, that terrified all of them. Her tiara was shot off clear from her head, releasing all of her black hair down her back, and she closed her eyes and fell to the ground, her body limp and still. While everyone ran and screamed around them, Misawa Daichi, Manjyoume Jun, Marufuji Ryou and Shou, Tenjoin Asuka, and Yuki Judai stared at the body of Akatsuki Manami, lying on the ground, still and pale, and after a moment, Asuka broke out sobbing.

"NO! NO! MANAMI! NO!" she bawled. Tears streamed from her face, and Daichi looked away. However, an unfamiliar voice called out from the scattering crowd.

"Manami!"

All of them looked to see the DJ jump from the stage and race towards them. In the falling moonlight, they could see his clean-shaven head, his cold, hard silver eyes, and his concerned, frightened expression on his face. He raced over to the girl, and lifted her body into his arms. All of them were startled and confused by his actions, but he placed two fingers on her throat, then on her wrist. Then he sighed with relief and looked up at her friends.

"It's alright. She's not dead. Just shaken and fainted. It's understandable with what she's been through all her life," he assured in a stern, cold voice. He then laid her on the ground and stood up. That was when Jun spoke out, surprising everyone.

"Sakuya?" he cried. The man turned to him, and smiled.

"Yes, I am Himono Sakuya," he answered.

At once, everyone cried out in surprise. This man…this mysterious man, was Manami's older brother?

* * *

FD: Short chapter, yes, I know, and would you believe I only typed it in less than fifteen minutes? Anyways, if there are words missing from the text or seem grammatically wrong, please forgive me, I am only human, and I can make mistakes. But it's not only my fault. As I've said before, the system with which I put up new chapters on can edit some words out, and there's no way of fixing them. I'm not rushing, I'm not pressuring, I'm just trying to update as many chapters as I can. Anyways, thank you for reading, and I'll put a new chapter up as soon as I can. Peace! 


	16. Cure For My Tragedy

Chapter XV: Cure For My Tragedy

(A/N: There was a little mix-up with the last chapter. Apparently, I had accidentally marked that it was the fifteenth chapter when it was really meant to have been the fourteenth. I'm sorry about that, and to make things more clearer, this is the fifteenth chapter. I'm sorry, and I hope that didn't cause too much confusion. Also, this chapter is based off of a song called "Cure My Tragedy" by Cold. Enjoy!)

* * *

Everyone stared at the young man, mouths either open or eyes wide. A couple were both. It was so amazing, so surprising, and so frightening to see him standing before their eyes. His bald, clean-shaven head gleamed in the falling moonlight, his dark, cold, stern silver eyes, glinting behind his dark sunglasses. He had the body structure of a full-grown man, but the appearance of a teenage boy. What was more surprising was to finally discover that he was Himono Sakuya, Akatsuki Manami's older half-brother. To everyone's information, he was under witness protection, as well, traveling the world with his band under confidentiality. So, what was he doing here? 

However, what was mainly on everyone's minds was Manami's health. She laid, unconscious, on the ground, just narrowly escaping a bullet from out of nowhere. This not only meant that she was in even more danger, but so were they all. Out of surprise, everyone expected something entirely different to happen that what did thanks to Sakuya.

"We need to take Manami to the hospital ward, have her rest and recuperate there. Then, when she wakes up, we'll explain everything to her," he explained, kneeling down and lifting his little sister into his arms. That was when Jun spoke up.

"You mean, you have to explain everything to her." The way he said that was almost cold and unforgiving. Apparently, Sakuya did have a lot of explaining to do. It was the night before Manami's birthday, he suddenly shows up without a word, and she nearly dies by a bullet. He not only had explaining needed to be done, but he also had a lot of apologizing to do.

* * *

It was late into the night, nearly midnight, when things seemed to settle down at last. Manami was lying on her back in a med in one of the medical rooms, while surrounding her were her friends. Daichi was in a chair beside her bedside, looking down at her peaceful, slumbering position. Jun was leaning against a corner, lost in thought of what had just happened. Shou was with Judai near the sink, talking quietly. Ryou and Asuka were standing near the door, silent, and Sakuya was the only active one. He was pacing throughout the room nervously, almost like a caged animal. They were all waiting for Manami to wake up. 

"WHERE IS SHE?"

Almost at once, everyone winced at the sound of the bellowing voice of Chronos out in the corridor, followed immediately by the sound of Daitokuji teacher.

"Please, be quiet. She is probably resting. After all, what had happened tonight must've been a terrible shock for her."

The door to the room opened, and there stood a stressed out Chronos and Daitokuji, both turning their eyes onto the only slumbering girl in the room. Even though she had shown complete disrespect towards him, Chronos cared for Manami, mainly because she was one of his Obelisk Blue students, and represented how he appeared to others. It was pathetic, but at least it was some form of concern towards her.

"I was right," Daitokuji spoke. "She is resting, and perfectly safe. No harm done, am I right?"

He looked to Sakuya and Daichi, and they both nodded. She wasn't harmed in any way physically, but stressed out and traumatized in so many ways in her life, it finally took a toll on her. It was more than just understandable. It seemed to make perfect sense for all of them. Daichi, though, was probably far more concerned about the girl than anyone in the room. So many things have changed between the two of them lately. He wasn't sure if it was because of the decision that they made nights ago, or because she was starting to trust him a lot more now, but all he knew was that he could feel her love almost every second of the day. He could tell instantly when she was upset, or when she was hurt and needed help. And he knew she could tell the same thing with him. He just wished she'd wake up, and everything would be back to normal.

"So, what happened?" Chronos asked all of them.

Things seemed to become more confusing when they began to relive it. One by one, they told them what had happened at the dance, about how Manami was singing on stage, about how she sang several songs almost perfectly and confidentally, even though she acted shy, they told about how she was just having a dance with Daichi, and then there was a bullet shot, and Manami, although wasn't hurt, fainted at once. Her tiara was shot off her head, but it didn't hit her physically. When they finished, a silent moment passed.

Sakuya sighed sadly, and walked out of the room. Then Chronos spoke again.

"Why? Why did this happen!" he yelled at them, glaring at Judai, hoping it was because of him so he could expel him. There was probably no possible way of answering that question without giving away Manami's secret, if they didn't already know it. The only ones who knew that they knew that secret was Manami herself, and she was unconscious.

Daichi looked back at her, starting to feel far more anxious than he had ever felt before. She started trusting them now, she started to learn to love other people other than her family members. She was now just starting to live a life while letting people into her heart. It must've been hard for her for these past two years, and she was finally finding happiness. Why? Why did this have to happen? Why now? Why this at all?

He couldn't think straight, he couldn't make sense out of anything now. He stood up and left the room, trying to find a clear and vacant spot that he could think straight. Then one thing struck his mind. The roof. He walked down the hall and found a doorway that led to a flight of stairs, and those stairs led directly to the roof. He climbed those stairs, and came to a small level platform that only had one doorway to it. He opened the door, and found himself outside, facing the ocean over the ledge of the roof. However, he was not the only one there.

There, leaning over the railing, staring out into the horizon, was Sakuya. He turned at the sound of the door opening, and smiled at Daichi.

"I guess this place isn't so much of a secret anymore, is it?" he joked. His voice had a calm, mellow tone to it, but daichi saw on his face streaks that were left behind by tears. He had been crying. He wouldn't be the only one in this school who would be, and definetly wouldn't be the last.

"Yeah, it is," Daichi answered calmly. It was awkward now. He stood before Manami's older brother, who was probably more than protective over her. If he discovered that Daichi was her boyfriend, then…things would become confusing…and conflicting….

"Daichi, I've been needing to talk to you," Sakuya spoke suddenly. His voice hold a cold seriousness in it, and this frightened Daichi.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I know about what's going on between you and my sister, Manami. You may not think that I do, but I do. I saw the two of you at the dance. There were more than just sparks there, and to be honest, I could tell immediately that you had feelings for her," he said.

Oh, boy, here it comes. The known, "IF-YOU-DO-ANYTHING-TO-HURT-HER,-I'LL-KILL-YOU!" talk that fathers and overprotective older brothers always had with the boyfriends of their daughters or sisters.

"I…I want to say thank you, Misawa Daichi."

"Huh?"

Daichi was not only confused now, but scared. Normally when someone who's trying to be serious says "Thank-you," it normally means a trap. He blinked and stared at the older boy.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Knowing that you are her boyfriend puts me at ease," Sakuya explained. Again, he was confused. Apparently, Sakuya saw this, so he explained again. "Manami is one hell of a kid, tough as nails, and fragile as glass. She doesn't let anyone too close to her, mainly because she either fears they will get hurt, or she will. She maintains that strong, tough side of hers just to keep others at bay. She won't let anyone close, and because of that, she has not only lost the ability to trust, but also the ability to love again. Knowing she has a boyfriend shows me that she's growing, learning how to trust and to love. She is…no longer that scared little girl that she once was."

It made sense now. Sakuya was never really worried about Manami's protection, because, knowing her, she would be safe no matter what. He was more worried about her heart, and about her social and personal life. By having a boyfriend, she has proven to everyone that she is now able to trust and to be happy again. Sakuya was giving Daichi more than just a blessing on their relationship. He was giving him his full trust to keep Manami this way. It would be hard, but he appreciated this.

"Thank-you, Sakuya," Daichi spoke up. He smiled at his new friend, and turned. For some strange, awkward reason, he felt he needed to be by Manami's side when she woke up. HE knew that things were going to be harder now, and that they would be confusing, but it will get better. He just knew it.

As he landed in the hallway, something caught his attention. It was a soft, light voice, singing. The song sounded familiar to him from somewhere, he just couldn't place where he had heard it from.

"_Remember all the times we used to play? You were lost and I would save you. I don't think those feelings will ever fade. You were born a part of me. I was never good at hiding anything. My thoughts break me. Do you understand what you mean to me? You are my faith…."_

Daichi followed the voice, but soon it faded and disappeared. He headed back to Manami's room, only to find that she was awake, and waiting for him. Her face glowed like the light of the sun, brilliant, warm, and her smile as comforting as ever. It took a moment, but everything seemed back to normal as ever.

* * *

A couple of hours later, people were dismissed from visiting Manami, and she was asked to get dress and leave as well. She was well enough to go back to her dorm and rest there. It was five in the morning of February the fifteenth, and they all needed rest from what happened that night. But Manami was not willing to listen. Instead of heading back to her dorm, she headed in the opposite direction. She went towards the beach for some unknown reason. 

However, that reason became apparent when she saw who was on the beach as well. Her brother, Sakuya, standing on the shore, staring at the gray horizon. Manami smiled as she approached him silently, and placed a hand on his shoulder. He turned, startled, and smiled at her.

"How'd you know I'd be here?" he asked her.

"I know you, don't I?" she responded. He laughed lightly, but then turned back to the horizon.

"It's been so long since we've been like this, hasn't it?" he asked her.

"Yes, it has," she said this almost sadly, and placed her head on her hand on his shoulder. That was an old gesture she used to make when she was younger and would see him. However, this time, he was not picking her up and holding her in his arms. She was only two inches shorter than him now. It became far more easier for her.

"Why did you come here?" she asked him.

"To see you for your seventeenth birthday," he remarked. She smiled, but knew there was another reason. A reason he was not willing to share with her, like always. There was always an extra reason why he did some things that he did. There was an extra, more important reason why he left home from her mother, there was an extra reason why he joined a band, there was an extra, more important reason why he asked Manami to come live with him, and there was another, more important reason why he came back to her now.

"Manami, I need to see her. I need to talk to her," Sakuya spoke suddenly after a moment of silence.

"Who, Sakuya? Mother?" she asked him.

"No, not mother. I need to talk to her, the one I love. I need…to talk to her. Please, Wake up, Nami," Sakuya spoke, staring directly into Manami's silver eyes. The moment he said that word, darkness swam over her sight, and she blinked.

The body of Manami went limp slightly, but then recovered and stood back up straight. Her eyes swam in circles with shadows, and her mouth curved into a wicked smile. She smiled at Sakuya, and then sighed.

"Hello, Sakuya," she said softly.

"Nami…" words couldn't escape him. He was more than just stunned to be in her presence. He was scared. He hadn't seen her in two years, and here she was, standing before him, the other Manami. Nami.

"So, what? After all these years, you've just suddenly became speechless?" she mocked. He laughed, and just smiled at her.

"I can't believe I'm seeing you again. I can't believe…I thought…After all this time, everything would have been different. Everything should be different, but it's not. I still…I'm…" Sakuya couldn't explain how he felt right then and there. Nami was probably the only one that ever made him this confused, this startled, this…this nervous. He didn't know what he felt when he was around her, but knew whatever it was, it could never happen, because Nami was also his sister, Manami.

"I've been needing to talk to you, as well, Sakuya," Nami spoke sadly, her voice soft and sad. She was upset, and, like him, confused.

"What is it?" he besieged. Nami pulled from him and looked out into the horizon, the moonlight hitting her perfectly, allowing her to literally illuminate in the night.

"Lately, things have become more confusing than ever. I've been…I've been remembering my past, but…because I'm a part of Manami, she is seeing it as well, and I want it to stop. I want whatever I'm involved in to keep Manami out. I want her safe and secure, not getting into the chaos that I've created," Nami spoke, her tone dropping and her eyes lowering to the ocean.

"What are you remembering?" Sakuya pleaded.

She turned to him, and he saw at once tears flowing down her face, and in her eyes were things he had never seen before in Nami's eyes. Fear, pain, depression, lust, love, and desires unlike any ever seen.

"I'm remembering everything. Everything of my life, of my past…of my death….I even…I remember my master…." She closed her eyes and a light blush formed around her face. "He was the only one I could trust, and the only one that I had ever loved, although it was never meant to be."

Sakuya was now interested in her life. He had always been interested, but she was never able to remember. In fact, it was the only thing restraining him from reaching to her. But now…he felt more than just hurt when he heard the words "_…only one that I had ever loved…_" It made him hurt inside, and made his heart jump twice. He wanted to both not hear and hear what she was trying to say.

"Will you tell me what you remember so far?" he asked her. She smiled at him, and then nodded.

"My dreams are faint, but they're clear enough to tell me what my life once was like. I remember…that I was a warrior, an assailant, for an ancient kingdom, an ancient, perfect kingdom that was soon covered with darkness…." She started. Her eyes lowered, and more tears began to fall from her eyes. "I served a high and powerful king all my life, and I guess as I got older, I found myself falling in love with this king. He was more than I ever thought could exist, but it was forbidden for me to even…to even think and fantasize about a life with him…."

"Why?" Sakuya couldn't help but ask. She turned to him, and more tears fell from her eyes.

"Because...because he was already married! When I was at the ceremony, every bone in my body told me to stop it, told me to break them up…but…but he looked so happy with her. I just couldn't do that to him. I couldn't hurt him like that," she sobbed. She fell to her knees, covering her eyes with her hands as she wept. Sakuya approached the weeping girl, and placed his hands on her shoulders. Soon her sobs were drowned out by the sounds of the ocean waves crashing up against the shore beside them.

A few silent moments passed, and all of a sudden, Sakuya asked Nami the one thing he would probably have never asked by himself. It felt like as if every bone in his body was to say this, to announce it to her. He lost complete control over his body, and instincts took over him.

"It's okay, Nami. Everything will be okay. Please, may I ask you something?" he took both her hands in his own, and looked directly into those tearful, silver dark eyes. He could feel his heart racing in his chest, he could feel his face heat up, and he wanted very much to say this…and he did….

"Nami, marry me."

There was more than just a surprised, awkward silence between them. In Nami's eyes, where there once was depression and pain, it was soon replaced by anger and rage and hatred. She pulled her hands from him, and struck one across his face hard. His eyes flew wide, and he was thrown from the shore into the ocean. He touched his cheek, and felt blood pouring from the cut. He looked up at Nami, who was glaring like a demon at him.

"THAT IS THE MOST DISGUSTING THING YOU HAVE EVER DONE! I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!"

her voice echoed like a siren in the darkness, and she turned and stomped back towards the Obelisk Blue dormitory. However, on her way back, tears streamed her face, and the moment she reached the door to the Girls' dorm, she fell to her knees and broke down. She needed help, she needed someone to take away this pain she had in her heart. This was a different kind of pain. This was the pain of a tragedy. She needed a cure for her tragedy….

* * *

The soft howl of the wind appeared to have been what woke Misawa Daichi up from his peaceful slumber, but upon a more focused matter, it wasn't. He shot up in bed after having suffered from a terrible dream, and looked to the window, only to see it was open, and someone was standing on the balcony, turned from him. 

"Manami?" he spoke out, but at once, the figure lifted their legs over the railing and jumped from the balcony. Immediately, on instinct, he leapt from his bed and rushed to the balcony, but at once the figure was sprinting across the grass, heading towards the ocean. It was Manami. He recognized that stance anywhere.

He ran back into his room, grabbed his Ra Yellow blazer, his duel disk, somehow feeling that he'll need it, and one of his decks, trying to figure out why he was suddenly feeling that he was about duel someone. But why? Why was he feeling like this? Was Manami in trouble? He didn't know, but he had to find her….

* * *

"JUDAI! JUDAI, OPEN UP!" 

"Misawa? What's going on? Why are you here so early?" Judai asked from his bed, not wanting to get up and answer the door.

"Just open up! I think something is wrong with Manami!" Daichi yelled through the door.

"What?" Judai and Shou exchanged looks, and the two of them quickly got dressed and rushed out with Daichi to find Manami.

The waves of the beach crashed against the shore of the early morning more violently than usual. As the three boys raced across the sands of the beach, they noticed this, and this only increased Daichi's uneasiness. Normally it was nature that would give signs that something was amiss, and by seeing the sea like this, it assured his thoughts of the one he loved being in danger.

"Where would a girl like Manami be at this time of the morning?" Daichi asked his friends, and they both shrugged. Judai looked towards the ocean, and something came to his mind. Something vague and different, distant and blurry, like from a dream he had long ago.

_A girl stood in front of a dark and run-down building, her long black hair billowing softly in the wind while her cold, dark silver eyes stared up at it, the moonlight shining down brilliantly on her Obelisk Blue Blazer and skirt. She seemed so beautiful, so right in the night light, like as if she just belonged…._

"_I know, and I don't care. I've wandered into the Abandoned dorm more than once, and was never caught…."_

"She's at the abandoned dorm!" he cried out suddenly. Daichi and Shou turned to him, and he blinked, not realizing what he had just said.

"What are you talking about, Judai?" Daichi asked.

"I'm…I'm not sure. It's like a dream or something, but…I feel like as if Manami has told me before that she likes to hang out at the abandoned dorm. Maybe we'll find her there?" Judai said. Daichi gave him a suspicious look, the normal ones boyfriends give their friends when they hear of them dreaming of their girlfriend, but he brushed it off as they continued to cross the island and head towards the abandoned dorm.

As they approached it, the pale white moonlight hit the dorm, adding a haunting, eerie aura around it. At once, the three of them start to feel a frightened sensation flow through them, but something happens that changes their minds. A soft noise appears beside Judai, and he feels a soft brush against his leg. He looked down, and saw a small, brown fur-ball lingering at his side, white wings sprouting from the creature's back. The creature looked up at him with wide green eyes, and rose to his level, crooning.

"What is it, Hane Kuriboh?" Judai asked the creature. It only squealed and flew into the dorm, while Judai chased after it, while his friends followed him. They followed the monster down the halls and rooms of the dorm, sometimes being dragged into dead-ends, and then, finally, Hane Kuriboh dragged them into a large, amazingly kept dining room. The tables were stacked against the walls, cobwebs and dust covering them completely. There were no chairs, no windows, just one door…all the way on the opposite side of the room.

Standing in front of this door was Manami, her arms crossed over her chest, her silver eyes glaring at the boys in a deadly manner. At once, Hane Kuriboh squealed and chirped excitedly, and flew towards Manami, circling her and nuzzling under her chin and into her neck. Manami giggled softly, closing her eyes and stroking the creature's brown fur. The creature continued to chirp and squeal with happiness.

"It's good to see you, again, too, Hane Kuriboh," Manami spoke in a dark and cold, mature voice. Her eyes opened slightly, and in them, the boys could see clear tears of pain in them. She was in pain, but there was something else wrong. Something that they knew she wouldn't confess straight-out.

"Manami, what's going on? What are you doing here?" Daichi asked her. She turned to the boys, her eyes holding no emotion, no love, and no assurance that everything was well. Instead, they were cold, dark, deep, and had this evil, dark aura in them that frightened the boys. She glared at them, and then spoke as Hane Kuriboh disappeared.

"I need to do something here and now. I need to prove something to myself and to another. I need…I need to find a cure for my tragedy, and the only way to do that is…I need to duel you, Misawa Daichi!" she announced, pointing an accusing finger at Daichi. At once, the boys gasped in surprise.

* * *

FD: At last, I finally updated! Yay!(Starts singing "three cheers for the red, white, and blue!") But seriously, I had to update tonight. Everything just seemed to become confusing now in this time of year. School is almost over, the 2nd anniversary of me signing on is coming up, and in honor of that, I'm reposting back up every story that I had published to back on. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, sorry about the mix-up, and please review! Thank you! 


	17. A Sprite's Fight

Chapter XVI: A Sprite's Fight

* * *

"Manami, what are you saying? Why do you want to duel me?" Daichi asked his girlfriend, confused by her demand. He had this strange feeling that who he was talking to was not, in fact, Manami, but someone else. Someone he had known for a long time, as long as he's known Manami. She didn't answer, but prepared her disk with her deck, glaring angrily at him. He didn't know what to do. He normally wouldn't back down from a duel, but hearing the challenge come from someone he loved…he wasn't sure what to do.

"Come on, Daichi! You can take her!" Judai cheered from behind him, clapping a comforting hand on his shoulder. Daichi turned to him, and saw a broad, assuring smile on his friend's face. He nodded, but was still not sure of what he should do. All he could think of was what would happen if they dueled. What would happen if he won? What would happen if she won? Would it affect their relationship? Would she hate him forever? He didn't know, or understand, what was happening.

As Judai stood behind his friend, a vague, blurry memory came to his mind. It was faint, like a dream, but was clear enough for him to suddenly realize what he should do. He could see monsters dancing before his eyes, he could see an evil girl laughing before him, and could hear her haunting voice echo in the darkness. He stepped forward, acting on instinct again.

"Daichi, wait," he spoke to his friend. "Be careful. Knowing Manami, she is probably a tough duelist."

Daichi nodded at him, and stepped forward, praying in his heart that this would have no affect on his relationship with her. As he prepared his disk and deck for the duel at hand, he could see the pain in her eyes as she glared at him. Something was wrong. She didn't want to duel him. He could tell. So…why was she forcing him to?

"Manami, what's wrong? Why are you asking me to duel you?" he asked her. She didn't respond to the question, but began the duel.

"I'm sorry, Daichi, but I have to," she spoke coldly to him. She drew five cards from her deck and this became her hand. She then drew one card, and looked at him.

_I have to do this for my master…I have to prove my love to him_, Nami thought to herself before playing.

"I summon Fatal Angel, in attack mode!" she pronounced, and at once, a small, child-like angel appeared on the field, playing a flute. It's attack was 1000, and it floated in the air, and then opened its green eyes, staring at Daichi. He became paralyzed for a moment in the sight of the angel. "Fatal Angel's special ability allows me to summon one spirit type monster from my deck with a Two-level or lower. And I summon Soul Piper!"

Beside the angel appeared, in a flash of gold light, a small, cream-colored orb of energy with two lines and two small hands. It played a pipe, but its eyes were closed completely, and its attack was 300. Nami explained this monster's ability to Daichi.

"Once every one of my stand-by phases, Soul Piper's eyes will open slowly, and when they're fully open, it will go directly to the graveyard, taking with it any child-like monster on the field," she explained. Then she placed a face-down card, and ended her turn.

"Fine. My draw," Daichi spoke, drawing one card. He then continued with his turn. "I summon Mathematician, in attack mode!" In front of him, an old man appeared, holding a staff and wearing a college graduation hat. "Because of this card's ability, I must send the top card of my deck to my graveyard, but if this monster is destroyed, I get to draw one card." He obeyed this ability, sending the top card to the graveyard, but looked at her field. Soul Piper had the lowest attack, but thanks to its special ability, it could not be destroyed in battle. However, that didn't prevent Manami from taking the damage if he did attack the monster.

"I attack your Soul Piper with my Mathematician!"

The man approached the spirit at quick speed and attacked the creature, but even though it was not destroyed, the attack went directly to Nami, lowering her life points to 6800. She didn't even wince, which was somewhat impressing, but Daichi continued on with his turn.

"I then place two face-down cards. Your move, Manami," he told her. But at that moment, Nami's face was crossed with a wicked smile.

"And what a move it will be. Activate face-down card! SANCTIONS OF THE TRIBE-LEVI!" she announced, flipping up her card on the field, which showed a group of ancient people gathered under a crucifix. "This magic card allows one of my Spirit monsters to be sent to the graveyard, and in exchange, I obtain the same amount of life points as that monster's attack points. So, bye-bye, Fatal Angel!"

At once, her angel disappeared, and one-thousand life points were added to hers, raising it up to 7800. Then she drew. "You remember my Soul Piper's special ability, right? Seeing as how this is my stand-by phase, it opens its eyes only a little. And, also because it's my stand-by phase and my Fatal Angel is in the graveyard, thanks to that monster's ability, I am able to draw another Fatal Angel to my hand from my deck," she explained, and instead of drawing one card, she drew two. She smiled again wickedly.

"I summon from my hand Mother Sprite!" at once, a full-grown woman appeared on the field, her skin a light, abnormal color, long, orange hair reaching down her back, and her eyes glowing like the sun. She wore elegant, covering garments, and smiled at Daichi. "My Mother Sprite's special ability allows me to special summon any child-like monster from my hand to my field, in exchange for two-hundred life points. So, come on back, Fatal Angel!"

Again, another Fatal Angel appeared beside the Sprite (1500), and smiled at Daichi, while her life points went down only to 7600. Then she placed down two face-downs. "Now, attack Mathematician, Mother Sprite! Lullaby Echo!" The Sprite flew at the old man, and started singing a paralyzing song, but Daichi activated one of his face-down cards.

"Not so fast! I activate Negate Attack!" he announced, and one of his cards flew up, and then shattered. "This stops your attack dead in its tracks, and ends your battle phase!"

"Nice move," Nami spoke flirtatiously. Daichi blushed, but stayed focused on the duel. He didn't want this to turn out like the one he had against Toniya. "Alright then, I end my turn."

Daichi drew as his turn began, and began to think even more cautiously than ever. She had three monsters on her field, one who could not be destroyed, one who summoned monsters to her field from her hand, and one that allowed her to draw monsters. Each one is a lower-level monster, and had attack less than sixteen-hundred. So, he had to summon a high power monster in order to take control of this duel.

"I summon Blood Vorse, in attack mode!" he summoned up his monster on the field, which had attack of 1900. Plenty enough to wipe out any monster on her field, except, of course, Soul Piper. But then again, she still took damage equal to the difference of their attack points. It made her an easy, vulnerable target.

"Go, Blood Vorse! Attack Soul Piper!"

His creature attacked the spirit, and this took damage of 1600 to her 7600 life points. That meant it dropped to 6000. She groaned, this time, and a small flicker of blood appeared on her lip. But she recovered quick. Why did that hurt so much? Had this become a Shadow Duel? He looked around. Nothing seemed different, nothing was darker or seemed out of the ordinary. So…why was she getting hurt? He wanted to stop, but knew that he couldn't back out now.

"Now, Mathematician, attack her Fatal Angel!"

Mathematician destroyed her angel, and this dropped her points to 5500. She winced, but then started laughing. Demonically. This frightened him, but he had to stand his ground. This was a duel, and, like in any other duel, it had to be taken with pride and courage.

"Well done, Misawa Daichi! You've taken quite a chunk out of my life points! But I'm not out yet!" this she said happily, but almost a haunting, cheery way as she jumped back onto her feet. She drew, starting her turn. "And I think I'll show you why I don't duel that much in school. First, my Soul Piper's special ability activates, opening his eyes only half-way. But then, I get to summon a very special monster….I summon Praying Monk Sprite in defense mode!"

Beside the Mother Sprite appeared another colorful woman with long white hair and wore clothes of a priestess (def: 2500, atk: 1600). She was on her knees on her card, her eyes closed, and hands folded in front of her, as if she was praying.

"You see, Daichi, my Monk has two very special abilities. While she remains in defense mode on the field, I have to pay a hundred life points to keep her that way, but for every draw phase I have, I regain five hundred life points. And, she boosts up any Sprite or spiritual monsters on my field by three hundred. She is also considered a child-like monster," she told him. She gave up her points (5400 now), but her monsters' attack went up to 600 and 1800.

"Now, Mother Sprite, attack Mathematician!"

The Mother Sprite attacked Mathematician, shattering him and sending him to the graveyard.

"Thanks to my Mathematician's ability, I'm able to draw one card when he is destroyed!" Daichi pronounced. He drew one card, but knew he couldn't activate it. His life points were now down to 7700. He looked up, and, once again, saw that evil grin on her face.

"That may be, but it won't due you any good. I have control over this duel, and I will win! I will prove to him once for all that I am unstoppable!" Nami jeered happily. Her eyes flashed in the darkness, like the blade of an assassin's dagger. Daichi was paralyzed by her glares. They were near deadly, and she looked like a predator ready to pounce on her prey. One thing was for sure, that girl was not Manami, and this was no ordinary duel….

* * *

While during this commotion, on the other side of the island, a young, third-year Obelisk Blue was drowning his hidden sorrows within the water of his shower, trying to think. It was early in the morning, and even though most people were asleep by now, he had suddenly gained the urge to wake up and take a shower. However, as the warm, heated water rushed down his body, he found himself thinking of someone he normally wouldn't think of. Manami. Why was he so interested into her? He never was before. She was a good person, and he always considered her to be a good friend, but that night…it was so weird. It was as if he was under a spell.

He remembered how Manami looked that night. The same as usual, nothing too different, too out of the ordinary. He remembered when they were kids, she was cute and adorable, probably could've been his girlfriend back then if he was interested. But he wasn't. In fact, he had never been interested in Manami, he just wanted to keep her safe. He hated seeing that frown on her face, because he wasn't used to seeing it. He was used to seeing that charming smile on her face. He was used to hearing her giggle and laugh. He was used…used to seeing her happy. Because of everything that has been going on around her, she was far from happy. She was far from smiling. She wasn't the same Manami that he knew when he was a kid.

The water felt heavenly on his body, cooling him off, and at the same time, warming him up to the point where his veins were boiling under his skin and in his wrists. He couldn't stop thinking about Manami. He didn't find her attractive, he wasn't interested in her like that. He was happy that she was with Misawa, but for some reason…he felt what had happened that night between the two of them wasn't meant to happen. In fact, it was prolonged. Why? He closed his eyes and thought back, trying to remember that night.

…_Ryou looked up at the sky, and realized that the clear, starriness of it will add beauty to anyone being surrounded by it. He looked at her, and at once he was engulfed by her beauty. The clear, beautiful night seemed to surround her magnificently. Her black hair billowed around her like a black cape of the night, her silver eyes sparkling like the moon, stunning anyone or anything that looked into them. However, Ryou was the one who grew victim to their gaze…The moment they turned onto him, he felt his whole body grow numb and still. He couldn't think straight. He couldn't act quickly enough. Every move he made, every thought that ran through his head this night, didn't seem to be logical or rational. He found himself losing control over his body. He found his thoughts being surrounded by her. He couldn't help it, he couldn't control it…._

Nothing made sense. He never thought of Manami like that, but the moment that her eyes seemed to turn on him, he lost complete control of his mind, of his body, of his senses. It was as if he was forced to kiss her. He never wanted that to happen. He didn't want to do anything to break the relationship she had with Misawa, mainly because, for the first time in years, she looked happy again. He never meant to do that to her. He even remembered how much she was in tears. He remembered how hurt she was because he had done that.

He didn't know why, or how, but he found himself remembering the day he saw Manami again after two years at the entrance exam to the school. It was an exciting day, the day that Judai had showed off his abilities against Chronos, but as well with Manami. Ryou hate to say it, but in the years that he hadn't seen her, she had become one of the best duelists in the school. The ironic thing was, she didn't duel that much anymore. In fact, after her duel, she announced to the school that there would be no possible way that she would duel again if she did or didn't make it to the school. She did make it, but she didn't duel again. Not that he knew of….

_The examination was well under-way, and almost half of the applicants that had wished to join had already been tested in a field exam. Up next was one girl, but there was a half-hour preparation period before the second half began. Marufuji "Kaiser" Ryou was walking along the bordering above the Obelisk Blue crowd watching the exam, the auditorium echoing constantly with voices and chattering. He was looking for a place of peace and quiet before the exam began again. Asuka had hurried off to talk to one of the girls that had just been tested, and Jun was with his own group of cronies. Ryou needed time to himself, seeing as how he had become the most popular guy in the school in just two years. Fan girls were always crowding him; it was about time he got some time to himself. As he walked away towards the exit, and headed down the cooridor, he saw a young girl sitting by herself on a bench, buried within a sketchpad._

_He approached the girl, and at once got a full view of her appearance. She had long black hair and lunar-shaped eyes. Her eyes were almost the same exact color as the moon, if not, darker. She didn't wear school uniform, like the other participants of the exam, but wore a black, leather, biker jacket, a black tank-top, and dark, faded jeans with boots. She didn't appear to be wearing make-up, and seemed to be wanting to be ignored rather than have attention drawn to her. She looked familiar instantly to Ryou, but knew he couldn't point that out to her. But as he approached the girl, a couple of two-year Obelisk Blue boys passed by her, and started picking on her._

"_Hey, honey, what do you got there?" one asked. He snatched the sketchpad out of her hands instantly, and her eyes went wide with fear._

"_Are you drawing some nasty, disgusting pictures? Pictures that I might like?" the other boy asked, grinning evilly at her. Her face went red, and she pulled away from them. However, that same boy leaned over, and grabbed her shoulder. "Come here, baby!"_

"_Leave her alone!" Ryou didn't know why he walked so fast towards them, or why he felt he needed to protect her, but he just knew she was in trouble, and she needed help. The boys stared up at him with fear in their eyes, and then took off running, throwing her sketchpad to the ground. She dropped to her knees to the ground and tried to recover it, but he joined her. He picked up her sketchpad and handed it to her, but in the process, looked directly into her eyes. They weren't colored like the moon, they were silver. He suddenly realized this. She blushed, and bowed._

"_Thank you," she said, hurrying along, but he, for some unknown reason, called after her._

"_Wait, maybe I should stay with you. In case those bullies come back," he insisted. She reluctantly agreed, and he came with her towards the balcony over the auditorium, watching the examination go on. There, they started talking, him mostly doing the talking, which seemed to be a surprise, even to himself._

"_You'll like this school. It's both interesting and complicated in some ways. There's a lot of nice people you'll meet here. And if you like dueling, you'll get along great here," he explained. She didn't respond to this, but then he found himself talking about himself more than he wanted to, or planned to. "My little brother is participating in the examination. He's praying he'll pull through, but I don't think he will. I don't think he belongs here."_

"_Why would you say that?" the first words she said to him since they were there._

"_Because…he's not that great of a duelist. He knows how to use a card, but doesn't know how to play it. He pretty much needs a lot more practice and training before he can even qualify for this school," Ryou explained to her. _

"_I guess we all have our own opinions and fates. What you may think will happen, or won't happen, will or won't happen," even though she didn't seem to make sense by saying it, he still understood her message. It was the same, old, worn-out saying of "karma." As the exams went underway, she spoke to him more. And then a voice rang out over the auditorium._

"_AKATSUKI MANAMI."_

"_I'm up," she told him as she rushed off towards the stairs to meet her duel proctor down there. The moment she stepped onto the duel field, one of the staff handed her a duel disk, and, at once, her posture changed. Her body went more stiff, her eyes went darker, and her expressions became colder, more serious. As she stepped onto the field, opposite of her proctor, the duel began. The proctor went first, drawing five cards, and then an extra card. _

"_I'll start off the duel by summoning Flame Swordsman #2 in attack mode. Then I'll place two face down cards!" the proctor proclaimed. A flaming man appeared before him, and two face down cards, as well._

"_Fine by me." Her voice. At once Ryou realized it, her voice was completely different. More mature, strong, deep, and stern. She drew one card, and an evil grin crossed her face. She let out a dark, demonic laugh. _

"_Oh…you are about to see how powerful the quiet ones can become. I activate the Magic Card, SPRITE INTERCHANGE!" at once, the whole auditorium erupted into gasps, and even Ryou's eyes went wide. That card was more than just rare, it was powerful. It allowed the holder to take control one of her opponent's monsters and sacrifice it as a fusion offering to summon a very powerful monster. At once, the swordsman came to her side, but disappeared in a whirlwind of leaves. _

"_NOW, PREPARE TO MEET THE FACE OF CHAOS! I SUMMON THE SPRITE GODDESS JEWEL!" _

_Before her appeared an archway. It stood like an ancient, Japanese shrine archway, but beneath it was a large pool of black water. The water suddenly lifted and started to form figures in the blackness. Everyone stared in impression and fear as a beautiful woman appeared, her hair long and black, her body dark sapphire, and eyes piercing, cat-like, silver. She wore beautiful garments that only one of high royalty may wear. She was the most beautiful creature Ryou had ever seen, and he felt it may also be the most horrifying creature he would ever seen. So, this was what the ultimate monster, Sprite Goddess, looked like? _

"_Now, I activate my monster's special ability! I am able to special summon any monster in my hand with the word 'Sprite' in it, and she gains five hundred attack points for each monster! So, say 'hello' to SPRITE SHAMAN QUEEN, SPRITE DEMON MIORA, SPRITE WARRIOR FLUX, and SPRITE AZTEC KIMIKO!" Four women appeared beside the goddess, each one as vicious, beautiful, and powerful as the next. Sprite Goddess' attack went up by 2000, which empowered her to be 4800, while Sprite Shaman's attack was 2000, Sprite Demon was 1400, Sprite Warrior was 1500, and Sprite Aztec was 1300. _

"_And there's more! Sprite Shaman has a special ability! By paying up half of my life points, I can send any magic and trap cards on your field back to your hand!" the girl announced. "And, another of my Goddess's abilities, I can give up another half of my points to have her attack twice in the same turn!"_

_At once, the proctor's cards disappeared from the field, and she called her attack. "Go, Sprite Goddess! Attack him with Screeching Time!" The Goddess flew at him, and shot her hand out, and at once, an orb of bright light struck out of her hand, and struck the man in the stomach. She did it once more, and that completed it. She had won. She had won the duel in less than two moves. _

_She turned to the crowd, all of who was in it was speechless, stunned, and surprised, including Ryou. He just stood there, staring at the girl with wide eyes. She was more than just a strong duelist. She was amazing. He knew well that she would become part of the school in no time._

That was before the year even began, and to this day, Ryou is still stunned when he remembers that moment, that day, when Manami had surprised and startled the whole school. He doubted that anyone forgot that day. He was willing to bet for Manami that she was even stronger than Judai, but a part of him felt that the strength she had, the power she had in duels, wasn't hers, wasn't human. It was as if it belonged to someone else, because he didn't feel her heart when she dueled against the proctor. He didn't feel the sparks someone puts into their monsters when they duel. He only felt the amazing power and strength the girl had. Nothing more, nothing less. There was something unique about the girl. Something that was inhuman, demonic, and unnatural. Something…that had to be warned about to everyone else.

* * *

"This is the end of our little duel, Daichi!" Nami bellowed in the dark room, her mature, woman-like voice echoing in the darkness like the light of the moon cutting through it. She drew one card, gaining five hundred life points thanks to her Monk, and then the Soul Piper's eyes opened even more. This time, they were fully open, and Daichi felt like what he was about to see would change him drastically.

"You remember what I told you about my Piper? Well, its eyes are wide open. That means that it will be sent directly to the graveyard, taking with it any child-like monster on the field. Naturally, it will take my Praying Monk Sprite!"

At once, the Soul Piper began playing its flute, and out from the ground came ropes as a black hole appeared beneath the Monk. She squirmed and cried as she was pulled down into the bottomless pit, following after the Soul Piper. As he disappeared into the dark oblivion, there was only one monster left on Nami's side of the field, but she wasn't bothered. Mother Sprite's attack went back down to 1500.

"Now, I activate the Magic Card, Pot of Greed!" she pronounced. She drew two more cards before playing another. "Then I'll activate a Magic Card you know too well yourself. It's Sprite Interchange!"

Daichi at once became paralyzed in his steps. He suddenly felt cold and still, like as if he had swallowed frozen, solid snow. He could literally feel how warm his veins were, how cold his body was. She was doing something so wrong and deadly, that he felt that she wasn't Manami at all. This was someone entirely different, someone deadly and willing to put anyone in harm's way.

"As you know my card's effect, I take control of any one of your monsters, and can sacrifice it to summon another of my monsters. So, I take control of Blood Vorse!" His beast suddenly took to her side, but in a moment, vanished with Mother Sprite in a ball of darkness, and in their place was the lethal and powerful Sprite Goddess Jewel. She was probably the most beautiful creatures Daichi had ever seen, but also the most deadly.

"I also activate the Magic Card, Monster Reincarnation!" she spoke again, activating another Magic Card. "This allows me to send one card from my hand to the graveyard, but in exchange, I gain another monster from the graveyard and put it back in my hand. And I chose Mother Sprite!"

She discarded one card, and then drew out another from her graveyard. "Then I activate my monster's special ability! I'm allowed to summon any monster from my hand with the word 'Sprite' in it, and she gains 500 points for each one! So, say hello to MOTHER SPRITE, SPRITE WARRIOR FLUX, SPRITE DEMON MIORA, and SPRITE LOVER!"

Four colorful and beautiful women appeared in front of her, and Sprite Goddess' attack went up to 4800. Daichi still didn't like that smile on his girlfriend's face. It was haunting, destructive, and evil. "And, another of my Goddess' special abilities is, by cutting my life points in half, she can attack twice in the same turn!"

However, at that moment, Nami began to feel weak. For some really strange reason, her sight began to grow blurry and her legs seemed to not be able to hold her up. The guys noticed this, and Daichi called out to her, seeing her stagger somewhat.

"Manami, let's end this duel now. You're obviously too weak and exhausted to even stand. Why did you want to duel me in the first place? Are you unhappy? Are you trying to prove something?" Nami couldn't even hear his voice. For some, awkward reason, she felt as if everything that was surrounding her at that moment was so distant from her. She felt her mind travel to somewhere else, to another place…another time. She found her self seeing hallucinations from exhaustion and fault. But…she was seeing him…she was seeing her master…standing before her…smiling, standing where Daichi was…she was seeing that comforting, warm smile….

_Master, please, forgive me…._

At once, Nami's legs gave in to her light weight, and she fell headfirst into the ground, shaking. At first, she saw her master standing before her, walking towards her as her monsters disappeared, and then, as she slowly closed her eyes he faded away, and she drifted into the darkness that soon covered her and her mind.

"Manami!"

Daichi, Judai, and Shou ran quickly to their fallen friend, seeing her face pale and eyes dark and distant. She was now lying on the ground, after losing the duel due to exhaustion. Daichi reached her side and lifted her up into his arms. She was lighter than he remembered. Why was this? She was so pale, so weak, so limp. She was more than just sick. There was something mentally and physically wrong with her. He could understand it would be exhaustion, but that wouldn't explain why she's been acting so weird.

As the three of them took the unconscious girl back to her dorm, and as they leave the abandoned dorm, while Daichi and Shou walk ahead, Daichi carrying Manami, Judai stopped and turned towards the building, thinking. He was somehow remembering things that appeared to him like in a dream. They were faint, but clear and realistic enough for him to grasp them. He remembered on one night, during Christmas vacation when everyone but him, Shou, Hayato, and Manami, were the only ones left on the island. He remembered coming to the abandoned dorm to ask Manami some questions, but instead met a whole other side of Manami. He recalled that she was referred to as "Nami." He remembered listening to her talk, and then being forced to duel against her here. He even remembered losing, and being taken to the Shadows to forget the duel. But…why was he remembering it now? Why was he suddenly remembering how dangerous the girl can be? Why was he…why was he so afraid of her now?

* * *

FD: Alright, that's all for now. It may seem that I left a huge cliffhanger there in the duel, but it goes with the story. Plus, Manami, (well, actually, it's been Nami all this time), has been up all night without any sleep, so you can understand why she passed out. Anyway, to make things more clear for anyone who's having problems with it; one boy likes Nami, one boy likes Manami, and one boy likes them both. And, no, none of them is Ryou, Jun, or Judai. Just three, and not on the same girl. Anyways, thanks for reviewing, and peace! 


	18. Nami's Promise

Chapter XVII: Nami's Promise

* * *

The bright sunlight streamed into the open window of Manami's room, awakening the young girl as she slept in her bed, suddenly finding herself being blinded by darkness one moment, and then seeing light another. She didn't understand how, or why, her dreams and nightmares seemed to be getting worse, but as she laid there in her bed, trying hard to remember what had happened the night before, it turned out to have faded away quickly just as it had came. She didn't remember anything about the party, the dance that she and Daichi went to, nor did she remember anything about seeing her brother again. She didn't remember a thing, but wanted to. Somehow, she felt as if a large portion of her memory had been wiped clean.

She turned onto her side, staring out the window, trying to think of what had happened, but one thing came to her mind. A dream she had. It was faint, and seemed blurry to her, but it was there. She could almost remember it perfectly. In this dream, she felt and seemed different. It was as if…she was another girl. In this dream, Manami was standing alone on a balcony, staring out into a beautiful, advance city, and as she watched the city, the lights of the city began to change. They began to glow bright blue, and then turn to a haunting, bright emerald. Then, the lights turned yellow, then gold, then orange. Then they began to turn red, and as they were glowing red, they became darker and brighter. Soon, the lights of the city began to glow a bright scarlet red, like blood. Manami backed away from the balcony, terrified of what she was seeing, but she backed up into someone else who was right behind her.

Manami turned to see that it was a full-grown man, but he held the elegance and grace of an angel. She blushed in his presence, and found herself bowing to him. "My Lord…" she found herself saying. The man smiled at her, but in his gold eyes were tears that she felt would bring tears to her own. As Manami stood there before him, she never expected her dream to change so suddenly. The actions of the man startled and confused her.

The man embraced her around the waist, and she couldn't help but blush. He was inches taller than her, and he cried into her hair. "I've lost everything now. I've lost my wife, I've lost my city. I don't want to lose you," he sobbed. Manami would feel her body growing warm and weak in his arms, and just when she was starting to enjoy his hold, he pulled away, turning from her. She reached towards him, and found her speaking words softly that she had never uttered before.

"You will never lose me, My King. I'm yours forever," she spoke, bowing again. She could feel tears in her own eyes, and then the King turned back to her, tears floating down his face. He approached her, and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"You were always by my side through it all. I know, no matter what, I can trust you, Nami," he spoke.

That was where the dream ended. Manami had that dream exactly two nights ago, but it was still clear to her. For some strange, awkward reason, it felt as if that was more than just a dream to her. It felt like a memory from long ago. As Manami laid there in her bed, she felt herself trying to ignore that dream, and stay focused on what was going on in her real life. She tried as hard as she could to remember what had happened last night, but nothing came up. Everything that had happened between now and last night seemed to have vanished completely from her mind. As she laid there on her bed, she slowly closed her eyes, and felt her body drift back into subconsciousness.

As she slept, she dreamt of a life that once existed. She dreamt of being happy, of being with her brothers, her mother, and her father. She dreamt of nothing being wrong in her life, and she dreamt of having the most normal and perfect life of all. But as she slept, she realized that this dream of hers would never become a reality. Her life was in shambles, and there was nothing anyone could do about it.

"_Rest, little Manami. You need your strength. The fight has only begun…."

* * *

_

It was February 15, Manami's birthday, and the day after Valentine's Day. Even though the winter season was just barely ending, it was too soon to expect blossoms to bloom and fall. However, needless to say how illogical and impossible it was, they came for some unknown reason. The moment Manami woke up that day and looked outside of her window, you would be surprised by the look on her face, the look of sheer surprise and happiness at what she saw. The sunlight streamed down onto the island lightly, spreading a warm layer across everything it touched. In the trees overhead were pink cherry blossoms and peach blossoms, blooming continuously throughout all the trees. As Manami got dressed, prepared to take advantage of this day, she felt something was suddenly wrong with the world. She stood there, before her mirror, staring at her body, and suddenly realized how pale she was. She saw how light her body looked, and how limp her hair had become. Then, something came to her mind that struck her heart even worse.

Her father. She fell to her knees, suddenly realizing that today was her birthday, and the anniversary of when she and her father had reunited. As she stared at her reflection, memories began to flood back into her mind.

_"Daddy! Daddy! Look! Look at those flowers!"_

_"Look at the stars, Manami. There's your sign right there. Aquarius."_

_"Dad…why did you leave me?"_

Manami just stood there, and tears began to run down her face. She couldn't move, but her hands somehow found their way to her face. She hid her eyes within them, and allowed the tears to flow from them. So much pain ran through her in that one moment, it was unbearable. She knew she couldn't face this day. She was all alone. People wouldn't understand what type of pain was in her now. No one would know what went through her mind, what existed in her heart…the pain…the suffering…of a lost child…searching for her father….

It took more than just a few moments for Manami to stand up again, and she finally, with a solemn, depressed look on her face, and tears in her eyes, she got dressed in her uniform and hurried out of the dorm towards the school to go to her classes. However, she was caught by someone on her way out. Someone who had known her for years, and wanted nothing more than to see her smile.

Someone grabbed her by the arm, and spoke as she turned to them.

"Nami, what's wrong?"

At once, Manami went frozen in her spot, and her body went painfully limp. But then she recovered, and stood before the person, recognizing the dark blue hair and dark eyes of the stranger. Ryou.

"It's nothing, Ryou," Nami told him.

"No, there's tears in your eyes. You were crying. What's wrong?" he asked. Nami turned from him, her eyes first darting from him to the lower left corner of her eyes. This was a signal to him. Showed that she had been crying, he was right, but she was in too much pain to talk about it. He knew there was a way to make her say it without pressuring her. "Come, let's take a walk."

* * *

Ryou had walked with her to the beach, and it was there that she began talking. Not in her own voice, but the voice of another. A more mature, strong, cold voice. Nami's voice.

"As you know, today is my seventeenth birthday. But today is also the same day that me and my father reunited," she told him.

"So you must feel awful because you're not with your father?" he asked.

"Yes, it…it feels like I've betrayed him," Nami spoke, acting like Manami.

Ryou looked at her, seeing the pain and confusion in her eyes. He somehow felt that same pull on himself. It was strange, but as the light of the sun hit down on her, it engulfed her beauty and added only miraculous aura around her. Her eyes sparkled like the stars as the sun beamed down on them, her hair billowed in the ocean breeze behind her like black feathers. He found himself looking at her the same way he did that other night. No, he couldn't fall for it again. He had to resist it! He had to fight against whatever she was doing to him! But as he looked at her eyes, he found himself becoming weaker and more vulnerable until….

"Ryou, please, understand, I don't want to hurt anyone. And I don't want to hurt you." He now suddenly realized that he was leaning forward, preparing to kiss her. He blinked, and then backed off, suddenly feeling embarrassed and ashamed of himself. He looked at the girl, startled by her words, and confused by what she said.

"What do you mean?" he asked her.

"There's something…something I'm hiding from everyone. Something that could hurt everyone, and I don't want to do that," the girl spoke softly. She turned from him, and approached closer to the water, which sparkled marvelously. Her dark, shadow-filled silver eyes lingered on the water, than turned upward towards the azure sky.

"You know you can trust me. Tell me what it is. You'll feel better," he assured her, trying to keep distance between them, knowing that he would feel that pleasurable, yet tempting sensation again. Why was he feeling things like that? He didn't love her. He liked her, but like a friend. Like a sister. She was almost like one to him.

Tears singed her eyes, and she closed them in depression. She turned to him, and, for a brief second, Nami saw her master stand before her, smiling, trying to comfort her.

_No, he's dead. He's been dead for years. There's no way he's coming back._

In the back of her head, a small voice spoke, comforting her, but it was nothing but a voice from a memory. A voice from long ago. A voice from a time long forgotten….

* * *

The dark evening fell quickly during the day, and no one but Ryou saw Manami that day. She had torn away from him the moment she stopped speaking and ran far from him, and disappeared into the trees surrounding the island. No one saw her since, not even the one she loved, Misawa Daichi. Everyone was beginning to grow worried, especially those who witnessed her actions the night before.

It was around seven in the night when Judai, Shou, Asuka, Ryou, Jun, and Daichi were gathered around the fireplace in the Osiris Red dorm, all lost in thought. Judai, Shou, and Daichi had shared with the others about what had happened between them and Manami the night before, and about how she acted and treated them. They told them about Manami's fierce and violent dueling, and about how she seemed different. A completely different person. It was mostly Judai and Shou that spoke. Daichi kept to himself, watching the fire with eyes full of confusion and frustration. For the first time in a long while, he looked lost and flustered. He hasn't appeared this way since his duel against that Amazoness, Toniya. It was like he didn't know the answers to anything having to do with the heart.

A few moments past of them sitting in silence, and then Ryou spoke up.

"You know, I've noticed that. Manami appears to be changing personalities constantly. It's as if one moment, she's that sweet, shy, self-conscious girl we know, and then she suddenly has an attitude. A fierce one, nonetheless," he explained.

"Yeah, I've noticed that, too. When she was being bullied, she acted as if she couldn't defend herself, but then she starts kicking butt as if it was nothing to her," Asuka agreed with him.

"Weird. Like that one symbol. What's it called, Daichi? The one of complete opposites? Something about twins?" Judai turned to his friend, partly trying to make him talk, and partly serious.

Daichi didn't answer. He just sat there in silence, staring at the fire. His dark, cold eyes held a serious and empty emotion in them, his arms crossed over his chest. The dim light of the fire danced off his face, darkness seemed to have surrounded him perfectly.

"You don't think it has to do with her brother coming back, do you?" Shou asked up.

"No, she's been like that way before Sakuya came back. She was even like this years ago, Shou, when she was little," Ryou explained. "I know it has nothing to do with drugs, because she threw all of them out months ago."

"She was on drugs?" Asuka looked up in shock, and this caught the attention of Judai and Shou as well. Jun only sighed with frustration that they didn't realize it at the beginning.

"Morphine and onogaisa. She was hooked on them for a little while only to numb the mental pain she felt. She didn't realize that by doing so, she was only increasing the suffering inside herself," Jun explained to them. Ryou looked up at him.

"You knew?" he asked him.

"Of course I knew! Isn't it obvious? She is distraught about being separated from her family! From her father! From her brothers! She's hurting inside! It's been this way for nearly two years! She needed something to numb the pain she felt! And the only way to do that was by drugs in her mind! She didn't want anyone to know what she was really feeling!" he cried out. There weren't any tears in his eyes, but there was grief in his voice.

All of them were silent, shocked, not only by how Jun reacted, but by what he told them. They all knew now what she was going through, but never saw it like that. Never saw how her only escape from reality, from her pain, was through drugs, through toxins. They never saw how depressed and confused a girl like her could be. She always seemed so happy, so care-free, so…innocent. Yet, inside, she was anything but. She has seen a side of the world no one should see. Loneliness clouds her vision, her mind, and she finds it hard to trust anyone, to tell anyone what goes through her mind. They never saw her life being so dark and sorrowful.

"Gemini."

Everyone looked up in surprise at the sound of Daichi's voice. He hadn't moved, but he had spoken, soft and calm, but cold, as well. He was still staring at the fire, his dark eyes reflecting the dancing flames with empty interest. It was so strange seeing the wise and calm Daichi like this. He seemed confused, frustrated, and lost. Complete opposites of what he was.

"The answer to Judai's question. It's Gemini," he spoke again. "Twins who are opposite. Like Yin and Yang."

"Oh. You okay, Daichi?" Judai asked him.

"Yes, I'm fine." There was no emotion in his voice. It was as if he was restraining what he felt from surfacing. They could all tell what he was feeling. He was worried about the girl he loved. He was worried about Manami. She had never challenged him to a duel before, and acted so serious and deadly. It was as if she was trying to prove something to them all by dueling him. The memory of her evangelic creatures dancing on the field against his own will never fade. There was something in those silver pools of hers that none of them had seen. Anger, betrayal, confusion, the pain of being lost, the pain of not knowing anything, but it wasn't the same pain they saw everyday. This pain was different. This was another person's pain.

"_I will prove to him once and for all that I am unstoppable!"_

Who was she referring to? Was she talking about Daichi? Ryou? Sakuya? Her father? Anyone they knew? It seemed like a mystery as to what she was yelling about. It was like a dream, a nightmare, that would never fade away. Daichi just stared at the fire, the duel replaying continuously in his mind. He would never forget the anger and rage on her face, the demonic glare that she held. It was like she was possessed, and he was never going to get her back. Why? Why, Manami, why?

As he thought these things, a small tear appeared in his dark eye, and trailed down gently, fading into the firelight.

* * *

_I never meant for this to happen to you, Manami. I just wanted to find a way to fix all of it. I wanted to know the truth. I wanted to know whether or not love was meant for me. I wanted you to be happy. I wanted you to find love. No, not just love. True love, the one you are meant to spend the rest of eternity with. I never meant to ruin that relationship with your true love. Now, I know. In order for you to be happy, I must not interfere. I must not surface again. I must not become you again._

_You are happy, Manami. But it is the stress and trauma of your life, of being away from the one person you love with your soul, that is making you rip inside. It is making you unhappy. It is making you distraught. And the only way to prevent anymore pain between you and your friends is to not be involved. I have only made things more troublesome between you and Misawa Daichi. I don't want to do that anymore. You love your father with your soul, but you love Daichi with your heart. The two most important people in your life, and I'm making them grow distant from you._

_That's it. It's final. I don't care if he's still alive. I don't care whether or not he does love me. I don't care anymore for that! It was years ago, centuries ago, and I'm not willing to let what happened to me happen to you. I let my King slip from my grasp, and I won't let Daichi slip from yours. You love him, and you deserve to be with him. You need him, and he needs you. I'm sorry, Manami._

_I promise, I swear to the Gods, I will not appear again to you, or to anyone else. I promise you, Manami….

* * *

_

FD: Hey, I am so sorry I haven't updated in a long time. You have no idea how busy I've been, and how new ideas for stories keep coming up. I've just recently added a new story, "Sakura, My Cherry Blossom," and already it's a huge hit. Mostly about the relationship between Jaden and Alexis, but I'm still working on that one as well. I've just got back from a week-long convention up in Oregon, and started school once more, but I promise, when I get the chance, I'll update again. I'm really sorry, again, and I hope you can forgive me. Also, please remember, read, and review. It would mean a lot to me! Peace!


	19. Sad Happy

Chapter XVIII: Sad Happy

(A/N: This chapter is inspired by the Cold song, "Sad Happy." Enjoy!)

* * *

"_She was only seventeen and forced to blame it on herself as she hides away to tame the pain she feels. She was thrown into a scene, a drunken man without a will. And a God that makes mistakes and still pretends. And I'll be strong, and I will sing, and I will take your pain away…."_

As Manami sang on her way to the Ra Yellow dorm to visit her boyfriend, she felt the pale white moonlight stream down along her back and long ebony hair, her dark blue blazer sparkling like the stars in the sky in the light. Her body looked a little limp and weak, yet she felt fine and strong. Like as if everything was normal. Everything was, but, normal. She hardly remembered anything from during that day. But for some odd reason, she wanted more than anything to see Daichi. She had a weird feeling that he needed to see her now.

As she approached the door to Ra Yellow, she was surprised to see someone standing outside this late at night. However, it was the wrong person she wanted to see. The one person who could prevent her from seeing Daichi that night. Kabayaman, their headmaster. As she approached, he looked up at once, and although his eyes flickered with little excitement about someone coming up to him for a visit, he suddenly became paranoid and suspicious when he saw her blue blazer.

"Ah, Miss Akatsuki. To what do I owe the pleasure?" he asked her pleasantly, though that suspicious look didn't fade away.

"Good evening, Kabayaman-sensei. I was wondering if you had seen Misawa Daichi tonight?" she asked him, returning the polite, and charming, smile. At once, that contented smile faded when he realized she was not there to visit him, but to visit one of his students.

"Oh. Yes, I had seen him. He is in his dormitory room. But may I ask why you wish to see him?" he questioned her. At once, she knew what went through his mind. Because she was a girl, and it was known around the school that she and Daichi were a couple, like all teachers, he didn't want anything "funny" going on under his nose.

"I just wish to speak to him. He and I had a fight earlier, and I want to apologize," she lied to him. Truth was, she didn't remember anything that happened during the day. She just remembered running into Ryou in the hallway, and then, nothing. Like as if everything that had happened between then and when she woke up in the woods late in the afternoon was a complete blank. The only thing to fill it was darkness. But she also remembered hearing a voice waking her up.

"_I promise you, Manami…."_

Whose voice was that? She somehow recognized it, but it seemed like from a long time ago. It was the only thing that woke her up, and sounded so distant and far. She pulled herself from the memory and back to the present, looking at Kabayaman almost in a trance. Her silver eyes seemed empty, yet seemed to shine like stars.

"Well, normally I would allow you to go up and speak to him, but because I am a staff at this elite Dueling Academy, I would have to decline the request. Like all the staff here, I don't want anything funny going on around here. And, further more—"

"Kabayaman-sensei, what's going on?"

Manami immediately looked up at the sound of the familiar voice. The entrance to the dorm opened, and there stood Daichi, rubbing his eyes as if he had been awaken from his slumber. Manami couldn't help but smile at how cute and charming he seemed that moment. She knew she was lucky to have a boyfriend like him. Daichi looked up, and his eyes went slightly wide when he saw that she was right there.

"Manami…" he spoke softly.

"Hey, Daichi," she looked down shyly from him. She was trying to play the most innocent and naïve act she could in order to convince Kabayaman into letting her come in to see him.

"What are you doing here?" Daichi asked her.

"Um…well, do you remember that fight we had earlier?" she asked, winking a signal at her boyfriend when the teacher wasn't looking. He smiled, and started playing along with it, putting on the appearance of anger and frustration, (not that he wasn't).

"Yes. What about it?" he snarled playfully at her.

"Well, I was wondering if I could talk to you about it. You know, apologize, and see if you can forgive me," she looked down, and tried hard to make herself appear as if she was about to cry.

"Sorry, but an apology won't work on this. I won't forgive you for going with Judai alone to the beach behind my back," Daichi growled.

"But Daichi--"

"Enough. I'm sorry, Manami, but it's over," he turned, preparing to go back into the dormitory, both he and Manami hoping that Kabayaman had bought it. He did.

"Hold on, Misawa Daichi. She apologized for it, and you should forgive her. She gained the courage to come and face you, and admit she was wrong. The least you could do is give her a second chance!" Kabayaman spoke up. Score!

"Well, maybe. But I need to have a long talk with her. She's going to need to convince sincerely that it won't happen again, and that I can trust her," Daichi spoke, not turning to them.

A brief moment of silence passed, and then the headmaster spoke up.

"Fine. I'll allow her to accompany you up to your room. But neither one of you speak of it! Sameshima will have my head on a platter if he found out about what I'm doing!" he sighed reluctantly, and both of the teenagers were smiling inside.

"Thank you, Kabayaman-sensei. And thank you, Daichi," Manami spoke softly, trailing solemnly after her boyfriend into the Ra Yellow dormitory, and, as soon as they were out of ear-shot from anyone, Manami let out a small shrill of excitement. "That was wonderful! You're a wonderful actor, Daichi!"

He didn't respond, but smiled, and blushed from the flattery.

"You are just simply too amazing, Daichi. Oh, God, I love you!" he stopped in his tracks at those last three words, looking down in confusion and flustered. He didn't speak, and didn't move. Manami noticed this. "What's wrong?"

He smiled, and turned to her.

"Nothing's wrong, Manami-chan," he said to her, and she smiled back at him, and closed the gap between them, placing a quick kiss on his lips. "So, what is the real reason why you came?"

That smile of hers quickly dissipated, and her eyes lowered. For a brief moment, Daichi thought she was going to change, but her actions assured him. She wrapped her arms around him, and rested her head on his chest.

"I just wanted to be with you tonight, Misawa-chi. I had this weird feeling you needed me, and I just had to come over and see you. I wanted to make sure you weren't angry at me, you weren't considering breaking up with me," she spoke softly. He was shocked by her words. Why would he be angry with her? Why would he even think of breaking up with her? He loved her, just as much as she loved him, if not, more. Was this one of those depressed and scared sides to her that he had feared seeing? Was this the lost, child-like side of her that he had known existed, yet rarely saw?

"Why would you even think that, Manami? I would never break-up with you. You mean so much to me. And I doubt I'll ever be angry at you," he assured her, returning the embrace. Although he couldn't see them, he could feel tears running down her cheeks. Tears of pain, and tears of relief.

"Daichi, this is what I'm always dreaming about. Being in your arms like this, you never letting me go. I love you so much, Daichi. Please, don't ever let me go," she begged him. However, he pulled away from her, and looked directly into her eyes, but there was a smile on his face.

"How about we continue this in my room?" he suggested, and she nodded, agreeing.

The moment they entered his room, Daichi closed the door and locked it, and Manami threw herself at him, repeatedly saying that she loved him and that she wanted to be with him forever. Saying these things aroused Daichi, and soon, the two were on the bed, enjoying each other's company, and then some….

* * *

Manami awoke late in the night with something tickling her nose, and she opened her eyes to find it was her own hair. Messy and falling over her face, she quickly sat up and brushed it back behind her head, and sighed, a brief headache coming, and then disappearing from herself. She blinked several times before she realized where she was. In Daichi's room…in his bed…under his blankets…in her underclothes!

Her face went scarlet at this information. What had she done! She was going to need to see someone right away after this! Why did she have to come see him last night! Why did she have to feel his love immediately! Now she was going to regret it! She was barely seventeen! Soon Daichi will be sixteen! It was all wrong! She felt like a criminal! Worse, a pedophile! She felt worse than she had in her life! She shouldn't have come last night! She shouldn't have insisted on staying with him! She should've have just stayed in her dorm room, like most girls!

She would've gotten up and got dressed, her clothes scattered on the floor, but she couldn't. Something stopped her, something that was wrapped around her waist. She looked down, and saw that Daichi was still asleep, his arm still wrapped around her when they had fallen asleep, his upper torso bare and visible over the blankets, while the rest of his body was covered. She couldn't help but smile at how he looked. He looked so peaceful, so calm and happy. Was this what she made him feel all the time? Or was he just dreaming, and this was the result of him physically?

She leaned closer to him, placing a light kiss on his forehead. "I love you, Misawa Daichi," she sighed, feeling the warmth of his body surround her. He was more than she had ever dreamed her true love being. He was smart, strong, wonderfully handsome, but he was also kind, sincere, gentle, and sweet. He treated her like no other guy had treated her. He was kind to her, he was considerate towards her, and always seemed to make her feel safe and secure inside. Never once had she have to worry about him taking advantage of her. Never once had she been forced to even consider breaking up with him. In her mind, she was the lucky one.

But as she realized this, she suddenly began to remember that there were other things surrounding the two of them. A crisis that seemed to encircle Manami, and there was no way of stopping it. She wanted nothing more than to keep the ones she cared about, to keep her friends, and her family, safe, but what was she to do? She couldn't abandon them, but she couldn't bring them involved into it. She had to find a way to tell them everything without getting them in trouble.

"Manami…."

A soft sound brought her back to then, and she looked down immediately to find that Daichi was still slumbering peacefully. Yet, he had spoken her name. Was he dreaming about her? She leaned closer in, wondering if she would be able to communicate to him through his sleep.

"Yes? What is it?"

"Manami…why…."

"What? Why what, Misawa-chi?"

It was almost as if he was talking directly to her, yet he paused in breath, and slowly, he began sweating, and tensing up. He was having a nightmare. No, a memory. A memory from when?

"Why, Manami? …Why do you want to duel me…?"

Those words…Manami never wanted to duel him before. Yet, it sounded as if she had challenged him before. And from the way he tensed up and shuddered in his sleep, it sounded like as if Manami had not only beat him, but had been brutal on him. Why? She had no memory of ever wanting to duel him, yet….

"Daichi…I never wanted to duel you." She spoke this softly, not wanting to wake him.

"No…stop, Manami…."

Those words…they cut threw her like a blade. It was so rough, hearing them about her. Hearing the one person she loves plead to her. And what made it all worse was to have no memory of it. She couldn't defend herself. So…if he couldn't defend himself against her, why should she be with him? If she was going to hurt him, she needed to be away from him.

Manami got out of bed, and walked solemnly towards the bathroom, where she showered, got dressed, and the whole time she did, she kept quiet. But inside her, there was a war raging. A war of whether or not she was willing to put Daichi threw pain by staying with him. So many things ran through her mind. It felt more than just a pull on her body. Half of her wanted to stay with him, wanted to because she loved him, but the other half…knew what was coming. That half knew what would happen if she did stay with him. He would continue being harmed, and it would be all her fault. She couldn't stand to see him suffer. Yet she loved him. She loved him more than she loved anyone else. She would always love him. He made her so happy. She had been happier with him than in the long two years she's spent in Witness Protection Program. Her heart raced as she tried to make a decision, and soon, she did….

When she stepped out of the bathroom, fully clothed, her eyes fell on an awakened Daichi, sitting up in bed, smiling at her.

"You are up early," he smiled at her.

"Yeah, um…" she couldn't bare to look at him, knowing that she had harmed him. It felt so wrong, now. Being with him, and knowing this awful truth that somehow, someway, she had damaged him, even though she couldn't remember how. "Daichi, I don't want there to be any secrets between us. If something's wrong, you'll tell me, right?" she asked him pleadingly.

"Yes, of course. And the same goes for you, right?" By now, he had gotten out of bed and was approaching her. The moment he reached for her, to embrace her, she pulled away, fearing she would harm him on contact. "Like now."

"I need to know…be honest with me, okay? Have I ever harmed you?" she looked up directly into those dark eyes of his, and saw confusion, as well as surprise, while in her own silver eyes was a look of pain, and fear. She feared herself.

"No. I mean…well, not physically…" his voice trailed off gently.

"I don't care if it's physically, mentally, I don't care! I need to know! Have I harmed you at all!" by now, there were tears in her eyes. He was surprised by her actions, how she was speaking. She was upset about something.

"Well, yes, but…you weren't yourself, Manami. It was a weird situation. Don't you remember? You challenged me to a duel in the abandoned dormitory," he explained to her. Abandoned dormitory? She never went there at all! How could he say something like that? But then again, she had the tendency of blacking out a lot, and not have any memory of what happened during the missing time.

"That's just it, Daichi. I don't remember at all. I haven't dueled since the entrance exam, and even then, I don't remember the duel at all. I hardly ever duel, because…anyone that duels me ends up getting hurt," she sighed softly. She turned from him, trying to hide the tears in her eyes.

"What do you mean?" he restrained himself from touching the girl, fearing it may make things worse between them.

"For as long as I can remember, dueling has been my life, but about a year ago, I stopped dueling. Most of the people I dueled against ended up getting hurt, like critical condition, or go into a coma, and I would have no memory of what happened during the duel. It's so strange, and so scary to see all my friends suddenly unconscious in front of me, and not have any memory of what happened. I stopped when the last person I dueled…actually turned up in front of me…dead…." Her voice was cracking now, shaking, and tears were streaming down her face. She brought her hands up to cover her eyes as she sobbed, and Daichi now knew that he had to touch her, to comfort her.

He wrapped his arms around her, and started speaking softly into her ear.

"It's alright, Manami. It's not your fault. None of this is your fault. I'm not sure why your friends end up like that after dueling, but I can assure you, it has nothing to do with you," he assured her.

"How can you be so sure? I black out most of the time, and I don't remember anything! I don't know what's wrong with me! And I want it to stop!" she cried. "And…I hurt you, Daichi. I hurt you! And all because of a duel I have no memory of! No! That's it!"

She pulled away from him, and headed towards the door. Tears were seen almost too clearly in her eyes. They were like small lakes and rivers formed from the liquidized pain and fear that she felt inside. She turned to him, a sad, and painful expression on her face.

"I'm sorry, Daichi, but if I'm going to continue hurting people, if I'm going to hurt you, then…I can't…I can't bear to see that! I'm sorry! I love you, Daichi! But I can't bear to see you get hurt! I can't be with you anymore!"

Daichi was immediately stunned by her words. He couldn't move. He couldn't speak. His heart had seemed to have stopped in his chest, as the whole room went silent around him. And, almost in slow motion, Manami opened the door, ran outside, and slammed the door behind her, leaving him there, paralyzed. After a moment of shock, Daichi fell to his knees, and the situation was quickly absorbed in. He began sobbing on the ground, pleading to no one that Manami would come back and open the door, and just forget everything. He wanted, more than anything, to have her back right there and then! It was so painful now! He never felt pain like this before! It seemed to have cut threw him like a sword. It hurt so much! His heart was soon not beating at all to beating rapidly in his chest! Like a heart attack, but he still could manage! She left him! She left him!

"NO! NO! MANAMI, COME BACK!" he sobbed repeatedly, but no one heard his pleads, and the girl he loved did not come back to him.

* * *

_No! This wasn't supposed to happen! Manami and Daichi are meant to be together! She wasn't the one that hurt him! I was! And now I've ruined their relationship! I've ruined the one chance Manami had to be happy! I've ruined it all! All for my selfish, rude, and irresponsible desires! I wanted so bad to know if he and I deserved a chance, and in the process, I ruined her chance! I ruined her one and only chance to be happy! To be in love! Now, it's all over! Manami will pull away from the world! She'll pull away from everyone! She'll get in even more danger like this! I have to stop this at once!_

Manami ran into the woods of the island, tears in her eyes fell like raindrops onto the darkened ground that was soon covered by her shadow. She didn't want to have done that! She didn't want to betray Daichi! But she had to! She now knew that she was hurting everyone around her, and that included him! She loved him so much, she wanted, more than anything, to spend the rest of her life with him, but if that meant wounding him, either physical or mental, she didn't care! She can't be with him!

She fell against a tree, sobbing, and looked up at the clear, blue sky. How could a day as beautiful as this bring so much pain! Her body shook with each sob, and soon she was on her knees, sobbing. She had so many questions, all unanswered, and all about herself. Why was she doing this? Why was she continuously hurting people, yet have no memory of it! Why was she putting the lives of others before herself! She was so selfish! She was so inconsiderate! She didn't want any of this to happen! She was too shaken to even think straight. She just wanted to find someone to comfort her, to show her what her life has been like so far. She wanted, more than anything, a shoulder to cry on.

From behind her, a sound broke her sobs and cries. A twig snapping in two. She turned at once to see a dark figure in the light of the sun approach her. It took her a moment to recognize that ragged posture and shaggy appearance of a man in his late thirties, early forties. The man held a cold, piercing stare in those dark eyes and sleeked, thinning dark hair. He wore a dark suit that seemed to glimmer in the light of the day. A smile crossed the young girl's face as she recognized the man instantly.

"Uncle John!" the girl wailed as she stood up and ran towards him, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Uncle John! Everything has gone wrong! I don't want to stay here anymore! I want to go home! I want to see my daddy!"

For a brief moment, it felt that the man, Abruzzi, was going to return the embrace, but didn't. He pulled the sobbing and distressed girl away, and looked her cold in the eyes. She sniffled, shaken, and looked into that serious and stern face. He returned a dark glare that she didn't recognize, and shocked the girl.

"Uncle John, what's wrong?" she asked him, wiping away her own tears. He didn't say anything, but did something that caught the girl with surprise, shock, and fear…for her own life….

The man was at least three-times the girl's size, weight, and strength. He brought out his arm, but when he brought it back in, he purposely struck Manami in the abdomen, just barely below her ribcage. At once, all the air in her body was forcefully pushed out, and she gasped is shock. Her body was soon filled with uncontrollable pain, shaking as it flowed through her veins. This pain was twice the shock, as it was both the pain of the strike, but as well as the pain of betrayal.

She fell to her knees, clutching her abdomen, and looked up at the man she had trusted her life in for more than two years. She tried to gasp out words, but they were too much. The only word she could cough up was, "why…?"

She fell to the ground completely, limp, and motionless, as she slowly drifted into unconsciousness. However, as she was lost forever in the dark abyss of her mind, she did not expect that this sudden betrayal to be the awakening of two different wars. A war, not only within her, but a war around her. A battle for her own life….

* * *

FD: Alright, that's it for now. I know this chapter is long, but I had to make it this way. The conflict is now just barely beginning, and I think you guys will like what I have in store for the rest of the story. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, as well as the others, and I'll update as soon as I can. I know, this one was angsty and depressing, but I had to for some reason. When I typed this up…I don't know how to explain it, but it was like my hands were moving on their own. I guess that's what happens when a writer gets so deep into their own story, the words just seem to come out on their own. Like I said, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I'll update as soon as I can. Peace! 


	20. A Road To Somewhere

Chapter XIX: A Road To Somewhere

* * *

Classes resumed as usual that day with no hints and traces of what had been going on around a group of the students. All of them acted as normal as possible, including Misawa Daichi, who was still hurting over the break-up, but didn't want to show it. He masked his pain with his calm and collective demeanor, and tried hard to forget about it, but it wasn't working. However, something weird was going on, as the cool and clear sky soon filled with clouds, dark and heavy with a possible chance of rain, but it wasn't raining. Not yet. It was still a dark day, and it felt as if it was going to remain that way for awhile.

In third period class, though, which was where most of the first year students were in Daitokuji's class, was when Judai, Shou, Asuka, and Daichi obtained news that seemed to frighten them a little. They were doing their work, like normal, until the door to the classroom opened. In stepped the Manjyoume brothers, including Jun, and all had concerned faces. Chousaku went to go talk to Daitokuji, while Jun walked up the alleyways of the desks and approached the desk that Asuka sat at with her friends. Daichi couldn't help but overhear their conversation.

"Asuka, have you seen Manami at all today?" Jun asked the blonde girl.

"No, and to be honest, I thought you might have. Ayukawa-sama has been searching for her all day," Asuka spoke.

"We haven't seen her, and we're starting to get worried. A helicopter landed on the island late at night, and with it carried three of the mobsters from the Mafia that are searching for Manami. We have to find her and get her off the island as soon as possible," Jun explained to her.

"Oh my God!" Asuka spoke. She turned to Daichi, who was pretending he wasn't listening. "Daichi, have you seen Manami at all?"

"No," was the only word to escape his lips before he briefly remembered how sad and distraught Manami looked before walking out the door of his dorm room. And to belief that that was only this morning. He didn't know where she went to, she didn't say, but she was too upset to even think clearly, like how he had been. He hadn't told anyone yet about the break-up, and he wasn't planning on doing so. At least, not yet.

"Judai!" Jun turned around to face the brunette across the walkway. "Have you seen Manami?"

"No, none of us have. She's not in her classes?" Judai asked.

"No, we've already checked. We need to find her," Jun walked down the walkway towards his brothers, and told them that no one has seen her. There was something weird in Chousaku's eyes, and it caught Daichi's attention, yet only briefly. Something was definitely wrong. They asked Daitokuji to excuse the four students they had talked to, and immediately, Asuka, Judai, Shou, and Daichi followed them out into the hall outside the classroom.

The door closed behind them, and then Shoji and Chousaku faced all of them. Chousaku was the one that spoke, though.

"Alright, we need to find Manami right away. The more time we waste, the more likely she'll be in danger. We have to split up in order to cover more ground. Search any place you know Manami would most likely go to. Ryou and Sakuya will join in the search as well, and when you find Manami, bring her back to Osiris Red. Apparently, the bastards know everything about her, so they won't expect to find her in Osiris Red. We'll meet back there in three hours."

And with that, the group split up, on search for their missing friend….

* * *

"_I've never really had anyone look at any of my drawings, unless they take them from me."_

One of the places that Daichi knew Manami would go to would be the beach. He remembered when they had sat there on the beach and he watched her draw beautiful and amazing pictures. One of the most memorable times was before they were a couple, when she had brought him lunch during that one day, and just started talking to him. He gave her tips on one of her drawings, and he wanted to get information out of her about who it was that she liked. It was a sweet, and cherished memory of his, one of many.

However, as Daichi approached the beach, he realized that not only was it no longer a beautiful and breath-taking scene, but Manami wasn't there. The beach had turned dark and almost cold now. The dark sky added an omniscient aura about it, and cast dark shadows across the ground. A small pain struck Daichi in his heart, as this was one of Manami's favorite places to go to, mainly because it was beautiful and seemed perfect to her. The place that Manami would spend a lot of her free time at suddenly felt lonely and cold. Just like how Manami probably felt all her life….

* * *

"_I feel kind of bad for him…. He reminds me of someone I know…."_

Asuka could remember that day well. The day that she and Manami actually got along. It was within the gym for Physical Education, when it was Obelisk Blue against Osiris Red for baseball. Manami had played very well. Asuka couldn't believe that she was so good at baseball, or that Manami was so athletic. She never really showed it. Back then, if Asuka had been told that she and Manami would be friends, she probably wouldn't believe it. Manami seemed to have an issue with her after trespassing into her room and breaking the frame that held the picture of her brothers in it. Manami eventually forgave her, and the two had become friends. Manami even told her about her brothers and father before anyone else. They even listened to music together, and Manami told her what some of her favorite songs remind her of. It was a cherished moment between the two of them, and Asuka now knew that the two of them had always been friends.

As Asuka entered the gym, which was empty, she suddenly felt a little sting of pain inside herself as she saw that the gym was dark and held an empty aura around it. More cold and sad, how the day had been going, Asuka feared that soon, everyone would feel like that. As she turned from the gym, disappointed that Manami wasn't there, she prayed that Manami was okay….

* * *

"_It's where I feel most at peace…."_

Judai was somehow pulled towards the Abandoned dormitory as he searched for Manami. He knew why, also. He remembered well of the night he, Hayato, and Shou wandered to the dorm, and found Manami outside, looking up at it. He remembered being pulled within the dorm by her, and, although he wanted to ask her questions, she demanded that the two of them duel. He remembered what she spoke of that night. He remembered how she acted. It wasn't like the Manami they knew. It was a different girl. A different Manami. A Nami. She spoke of how much pain she was in, and how lost she felt. She was an excellent duelist, and although Judai lost, he still had fun. The girl was strong when she dueled, and self-assured. Far more than Judai had taken for granted. That duel, although as hard as Nami tried, he would never forget it.

As Judai approached the dorm, as small pain struck his heart, as he didn't see Manami outside of it, and when he went within it, he didn't find her there, either. The dorm looked as eerie and creepy as ever, but there was something else about it that Judai noticed. It seemed, not only empty, but cold. The dark sky and empty windows made the dorm seem more like a depressing and lonely place to see. He wandered if that was what Manami meant by how her life had always been. Cold, lonely, and a darkened thing to exist….

* * *

"_Yes, it's Ojama Yellow. He's cute…."_

Jun approached the cliffside hanging over the ocean where he and Manami had sat and talked. It was the first in a long time where they were actually nice to each other. Jun never meant to act like such a jerk towards Manami at the beginning. He doesn't exactly know why he acted that way, but a part of it was because he knew that she and Chousaku had something going on. Manami may have broken it off with him, but Jun could tell she still had feelings for him. It was pretty obvious. So Jun had to find a way to show her that because she ended it, it won't ever happen again. Boy, was he surprised to learn that the person she was really in love with was Misawa Daichi. He felt like such a jerk for picking on her that he went up to her and apologized, but she had already forgiven him. However, he got a couple of beatings from her, and he deserved it, but she acted as if she didn't remember such things.

When Jun and Manami were talking on the cliffside, they were not only getting along, but Manami told him that she faintly sees Duel Spirits. She even came up to him and asked him to show her more Spirits, which was how she met Ojama Yellow Manami always had this cute aura around her, sweet, gentle, kind, and innocent. Reason why she grew fond of the song, "Field of Innocence" that she and Chousaku used to listen to. The song was sang and written by one of Manami's favorite bands, Evanescence, and it seemed to grow with her. Jun always remembered how she would sing it so perfectly and innocently. And her laugh was like a child's. Even though she was a troubled little girl who was constantly worrying about others before herself, she could still laugh like a happy and care-free child.

As Jun looked out onto the cliff where they talked, a small sting aroused inside him as he saw that no one was there. The cliff looked empty, and cold as the dark sky hovered over it, giving it the lonely atmosphere that seemed to follow Manami everywhere. As Jun looked at it, a small yellow creature appeared on his shoulder.

"Boss, what's wrong?" Ojama Yellow asked him. Jun didn't say anything but turned from that spot and walked off back towards the school, a worried Ojama Yellow following him….

* * *

"_I'm not a scared, little girl anymore. I can fight for myself…."_

Manami….

Sakuya walked up the stairway towards the roof of the school where he met Daichi for the official first time and talked with him. He knew Manami was just like him. When she needs time to think or search for a place of serenity, she would always go onto the roof of a building and stare out into the scenery below. Manami, being the known artist that she is, would always capture in the beauty of anything that she saw. Back home, Manami was always so sad and alone. After Sakuya left home, his mother went insane, and Manami had to search for a lot of places to feel safe and have a piece of mind. The roofs of apartment complexes and building always made that easy for her. That was where he reunited with her when they were younger. Manami had gone into the same Middle School that he had gone to, and made it a habit of going up onto the roof of the school just to think. When she came up onto the roof, she saw him there, just looking out over the railing. It was one of the many memories he cherished about Manami.

He even remembered, before he left, how Manami would come into his bedroom and hear him play his guitar and listen to him sing. She was such a sweet girl, always wanting to learn more and hear more from the people around her. She and Sakuya held such a strong bond, it was almost unbreakable. However, their mother found a way to break it when she wanted to control his life, and he had no choice but to run away. However, not a day went by when he didn't think of Manami and his little brother, Mikuyo. They were the most important people in his life. He even made a song in dedication to Manami called "Tears of You" that was always the last song he played at concerts and any musical performances. The last song was always for Manami.

"_I've seen you cry so many times, and now my pain may have taken your life. Don't cry for me, as soon the sun will shine on you. You play away with what you see and know, and soon I will be home. I can't wait to see that smile of yours. It shines like the moon and stars. When you cry, I'll be there to hold you and never say goodbye. Just know that these tears are of you."_

That song was never published out into the public, but he always sang it. He told his manager that the song was precious to him, and he didn't want anyone to even be tempted to make a cover of it. However, no matter how much he sang for her or of her, he could never bring her back to him. He cares a lot about Manami, and about her other self, Nami. It was thanks to Nami that Manami has been this strong, has lasted through all of this chaos. Because she had kept her so strong and protected her so, Sakuya found himself falling in love with Nami. However, he knew full well that what he felt could never truly be returned, as Nami was a part of Manami, and Manami was his sister. Half-sister, but sister, none the less. It was wrong, and he shouldn't feel like that.

As Sakuya looked around on the roof of the building, he saw that no one was there, and a small prick of pain struck his heart. No one was there, but as he approached the railing to look over head, he saw the whole island, which always had this beautiful atmosphere around it, seemed dark and cold. It wasn't as beautiful anymore, but exactly as dark, cold, and empty as Manami had felt almost all her life. He looked towards the forest, and he saw something unusual. Something large and white was in the center of the woods. For a moment, he didn't recognize it, but then….It was the propellers of a helicopter. That must be where the mobsters must have Manami!

He had to tell the others and fast! Otherwise they could lose her forever!

* * *

"_I'm sorry, Ryou, I don't remember anything from before me and my brother reunited…."_

Ryou approached the pier, having been the place where he and Manami had spent a lot of time together just talking. He remembered well what happened between the two of them, and how it all seemed to have changed. Because of what he did, he doubted Manami trusted him anymore. In fact, he doubted if she trusted anyone anymore. He still doesn't understand why he acted that way. It was as if something pulled him into her. Some kind of force, a force that tempted him, fought with him, and held victory over him. He never meant to hurt her. Ever since they were kids, they were friends, always close, always nice and kind to each other. He remembered when they were little, she came to him for comfort, for shelter from the real world.

Back then, Ryou wasn't one to fall for girls so easily. He always thought that girls were the same as boys. He didn't have crushes on anyone, but a few young girls had crushes on him. It was always confusing and frustrating, but with Manami, she didn't care. The one thing she wanted, above all else, was for someone to understand what she was going through, what type of pain she felt inside. Ryou was that person, especially after Sakuya left. Her world always seemed to be crashing down on her, and sometimes she would lose control, but Ryou always seemed to pull her out of the trouble, out of the chaos that surrounded her. Was he in love with her? No. She was like a friend to him, a sister, someone who he cared about.

Yet…why did he do what he did? Why did he want to kiss her? Why did he kiss her? Was it because he felt jealous? No, he wasn't jealous of anyone or anything. Was it because he suddenly did like her? No, it couldn't have been that. So, what could it be?

Shou didn't remember her that much, mainly because he was so little back then. Manami didn't even remember that much. So, why did he? Was it because he understood what was going on? Was it because he knew what type of pain she felt? Was it because he could relate to her in more than one way? He didn't know what the reason was, just that he had to find Manami. He cared about her, and he wanted, more than anything, for her to be safe.

As he approached the pier, he wasn't surprised by how gloomy and dark it seemed. The pier was always covered by fog and mist from the ocean. Yet it seemed especially dark and eerie now than it normally did. A small sting hit his heart as he saw that Manami wasn't there. Where could she be, then? He was praying inside that she was okay. Yet, a part of him was unsure. A part of him felt that she was deeply depressed. Otherwise, she wouldn't be hiding like this. As he turned from there, heading back towards the school, he heard the waves crash against the pier, making him remember how sorrowful and chaotic Manami's life had been….

* * *

"_Wake up, little Manami…."_

_Huh? Who's there?_

"_Wake up…don't fall asleep now…."_

_Who is that? Mama?_

"_No, little on, now…wake up…."_

_I can't. It feels so nice. I'm so tired._

"_Don't fall asleep, Manami…wake up…."_

Manami felt a pain in her head, slight and gentle, but it wasn't enough to wake her up from her unconsciousness. She opened her eyes, though, and found herself in a dark place, nothing but shadows and darkness surrounding her. Where was she? A light voice kept calling out to her. It was familiar, yet faint and distant. She could hear it, but couldn't tell where it was coming from.

"_Come to me, little Manami…."_

A small light appeared in the far distance of the darkness. It was warm, bright, and seemed to comfort Manami. She was a little scared, frightened of where she was. Yet the voice kept talking to her, and the light kept shining through the darkness.

"_Come to me, little Manami…."_

Soon, the light began to stretch out, and Manami felt her body moving towards it. The light stretched farther out to her, flat, and Manami began to realize it had become a white road, a walkway. She didn't know what was going on, yet her body was pulling forward, trying to make her walk along the path. Why? What was at the end of it. Manami didn't know what to do, but the voice kept calling out to her.

"_Come to me, little Manami…."_

She began walking along the pathway, towards the light, feeling her body become entranced with the voice. It was soothing, comforting, soft, and sweet, and so familiar. As she walked, she heard voices talking around her. Different voices, all talking and blending in with the darkness that surrounded the road. Voices that Manami recognized, yet couldn't place exactly. The only voice that she was focused on was the one that was calling out to her. She didn't know where she was going exactly, but it felt right. It felt as if the place she was going to was a place where she would obtain what she has wanted all along. Absolute peace and serenity.

"_Come to me, little Manami….That's it, don't think of where you're going, don't think of what you're doing…. Just let your heart lead you…let it guide you….A sweet innocence like yours…blessed by the Gods…you are true beauty in a child's heart…."_

Manami felt so tired all of a sudden. She wanted to close her eyes and lie down. She wanted to fall asleep. She wanted nothing more than to become lost in the dark abyss that surrounded her. However, the voice kept talking to her, kept pleading her to walk on. She had to obey. Somehow, she knew the voice wouldn't lie to her. She prayed that this road led to somewhere, and, hopefully, the one that was calling out to her.

"_Come to me, little Manami…."

* * *

_

FD: Alright, that's all for now. In case some of you are still confused, I didn't make Daichi an OOC in the last chapter, and if it seemed like I did, I'm sorry. But in my knowledge of teenage boys, once a relationship is broken up by the girl that they love, they go as emotional as we all do. And since Daichi _is_ a teenage boy, I just went along with it and made him as emotional as my ex-boyfriends when I broke up with them. However, like all guys, he won't admit that he was that way. And in case you guys are still not convince, please review episodes 36-37 of when Daichi dueled Taniya. He was very emotional during that time. So don't say that I went OOC, because I didn't, and if I did, I'm sorry. Anyway, I'll work on the next chapter as soon as possible, but for now, remember to review. Peace!


	21. Chasing Shadows

Chapter XX: Chasing Shadows

(A/N: This chapter was inspired by the song, as well, called "Chasing Shadows" from the Treasure Planet soundtrack. Enjoy!)

* * *

"_Come to me, little Manami…."_

_Who is this? Who are you? What do you want with me?_

"_Just trust me little Manami….Now, awaken…."_

Manami opened her eyes, staring blankly at the darkness around her, and then her silver eyes focused to where she was. She recognized the large field around her, the canopy above, and the many trees surrounding her. She recognized the large, white helicopter, and she recognized the men that stood before it, talking amongst themselves, not realizing that she was awake. She especially recognized one of the men as a person she had trusted all her life. Someone who was meant to have protect her. Someone who had looked after her for two years, and had now betrayed her. She didn't know what to do, but she knew what their main objective was. To kill her. Tears formed in her eyes as she remembered her friends, and remembered how she hurt Daichi. It was for the best, though. They would have been dragged into this, and wouldn't be able to defend themselves from it. Not even she could defend herself in it.

She bowed her head as she heard footsteps approach, trying to give the appearance of still being unconscious. Yet, somehow, that didn't work, as something hard struck across her face, sending her to the ground. It was then she realized that she couldn't move, and she felt something gagging her, tied around mouth. She choked on it, yet couldn't spit it out. She was bound, her wrists tied behind her, her feet and legs tied together, her arms tied close to her body. She was bound by rope all over her body, not able to move or scream. A pain serged through her face as she looks up with tears in her eyes at the man she had trusted with her life. He held a black gun in his hand high in the air, and was smiling evilly.

"You can't fool me, little Manami. I know you better than you know yourself. Trust me, when we're done with you, you're going to wish you were dead, and then we'll grant it," Abruzzi laughed sinisterly as he walked off to talk to his comrades. Manami just lied there in the grass, a black bruise on the side of her face that swelled and a trickle of blood fell down to her chin. Tears stung her eyes, but she held them back, knowing that showing any signs of weakness and vulnerability would only please her killers more. She stared at the grass below her, thinking of how she had screwed up her life.

It started when she herself started falling for Daichi. How could she be so foolish! Allowing someone come so close to her! She knew the dangers of it! She knew that she was putting his life at risk! How could she be so cruel! Yes, she loved him! But she couldn't allow herself to see him get hurt! That was why she broke up with him! She knew she was hurting him!

Manami shut her eyes, and found herself in that dark room again, lying on the white road. The light ahead was still burning brightly, and the voice was calling out to her yet still. Manami wanted to follow that voice, wanted to know who was calling out to her. Somehow, this seemed to be the only way to be safe and sheltered. This was the only way to actually feel at peace. Manami felt her body drag her down the road, and the voice still called out to her.

"_Come to me, little Manami…."_

Manami followed the voice, feeling her mind grow hazy and distant. Yet the only thing that kept her walking along the path was the voice. It was so soothing, comforting, like the voice of a mother to a child. Manami didn't recognize the voice, though, except from long ago. The voice was somewhat familiar, but she wasn't able to place it.

"_Come to me, little Manami…."_

As Manami walked along the pathway, following the voice, she felt her body flood with pain, but ignored it. She felt a little lost and scared, but ignored these feelings as she continued walking down the walkway.

* * *

"Any luck?" Chousaku asked, looking up as the young teenagers approached. All of them held sad, hurt expressions of failure. They all shook their heads, and sighed sadly. However, someone was missing.

"Where's Sakuya?" Shoji asked.

"Don't know. He should be back by now," Ryou spoke. They looked around, noticed what he saw, but a voice echoed through the area. A familiar voice.

"Hey, guys! I think I might know where Manami's at!"

At once, Sakuya came running along the pathway, his sunglasses reflecting off the sunlight that fell, completely hiding the stress signs and emotional trauma that was shown on his face. When he approached them, he told them what he saw up on the roof of the school. At once, slight relief filled their faces, but was soon replaced with grief. If that was where they were, they probably had Manami as well, and intend to kill her there. Thoughts ran through their minds.

What if Manami was already dead? What if they had her? What will they do to her before they kill her? So many questions that filled them with fear. Then Daichi spoke.

"Sakuya, take us to where you saw it at!" he pleaded.

"You kids go on ahead. We have to get to Sameshima's office and contact John Abruzzi. Maybe he'll bring some help!" with that, Shoji and Chousaku disappeared into the school while the others followed Sakuya into the woods. What they didn't know or expect was that the one person they thought was able to help Manami was the one holding her life in his hands.

* * *

"_Come to me, Manami….Don't be afraid…."_

_I'm not afraid anymore. I don't care what happens to me._

"_But you care about your friends….You're afraid for them…."_

_Yes…._

"_It's alright….You'll be able to protect them….Just come to me, first…."_

The darkness surrounding Manami became thinner as she drew closer to the light. She could literally feel its warmth on her skin, and its comfort run through her veins. It felt so amazing, and she felt herself give into it. However, a small pain shot through her body, and at once she fell to her knees on the road, so close, yet so far from the light. And the voice kept calling out to her.

"_Stand up, Manami….How can you protect those you love if you can't stand…?"_

Manami rose to her feet, the pain inside her growing. It felt so horrible, she wanted to give into it, but, for some odd reason, she couldn't. She physically and literally couldn't give into the pain. She felt hands on her physical body outside of this dark place. Cold hands roaming her body, exploring her flesh and beauty. Then a slight memory came to her of the night before.

_His kisses were like sparks that lit a fire within her…and each sound made her only draw closer to him….It was strange to her then…and still was…but it was a fact….He was the one she loved…he was the one that owned her…that needed her as much as she needed him…._

"Daichi!" Manami, again, fell to her knees, but this time, not in pain, but in grief. She couldn't believe she had hurt him like that. She couldn't believe she was being so heartless, so cruel to him. She wanted to die right now. She deserved it for what she had done to him and her friends. She deserved it for betraying him. For betraying her heart.

"_You don't deserve to die….You were thinking about their safety….Your heart was in the right place then…."_

"No! I deserve to die! I was cruel to them! I was cruel to everyone! I betrayed them all!" she yelled to the darkness.

"_Do you really believe that?"_

Manami looked up at once, and immediately, images flashed before her eyes….Images of memories she didn't recall…. She saw herself beating up Jun and two other boys…. She saw herself talking back to Chronos…. She saw herself swimming in the ocean in a black diving suit…. She saw herself beating up a boy she recognized as Shiyo, while she saw Daichi being held back by a group of boys…. She saw herself yelling after Jun and his friends…. She saw herself dueling Judai…. She saw herself trying to fight off Chousaku…. She saw herself standing on the railing of her bedroom balcony, preparing to jump…. She saw herself talking to Sakuya on the beach…. She saw herself dueling Daichi in the abandoned dorm…. She saw herself talking to Ryou at the beach….

"No! These aren't real! I don't remember any of these!" Manami yelled out to the darkness.

"_You don't remember them, because they aren't your memories. They are my own…."_

What? "WHO ARE YOU!" Manami yelled to the darkness.

"_You really want to know…? Fine, I shall reveal myself to you…."_

At once, the light grew brighter, and Manami felt warmth fill her body. It felt so strong, so tempting. She allowed it to flow through her, and it seemed as if she was bathing within the sunlight. It felt so wonderful to her, she wanted to become lost within them. She closed her eyes, and felt the light become her. As it did, it consumed her, and before she realized it, she was lying on her back again, but this time, she wasn't in the grass. She was in a beautiful, yet dark palace. A small light danced across the far cooridor, drawing closer. It took a moment for Manami to recognized the small, flickering light as the flame of a candle. Someone was coming closer. She needed to get away, other wise they would see her! However, she couldn't move! She was paralyzed! She tried hard to move her arms, to try and sit up, but she couldn't! And the person approached closer from within the darkness.

At once, Manami recognized the person approaching her. It was the man from her dream. She didn't understand it, but she recognized those gold eyes and that long, turquoise hair. He had this elegant aura around him, and it seemed to entrance the young girl as she looked upon him. He wore the robes of one of royal blood, and held a small candle stand in his hand as he entered the room. He had this omniscient look upon his face, as if something stressful had just happened. He entered the room, and looked ahead. It was as if Manami was invisible to him. He was, however, one of the most graceful beings she ever saw, and strangely reminded her of her own father.

"Where are you, young Nami?" he spoke to the darkness of the room. He set the candle down on a small stand on the wall, and looked around the room, his golden eyes shimmering with the dim light of the candle. A mature, yet lovely voice spoke in response to his call.

"I am here, my Lord."

Out from the shadows walked a beautiful woman with long dark hair and beautiful, lunar-shaped, silver eyes. She wore a long gown of lavender that was cut low, revealing much of her ample chest, and revealed her thin, yet flexible arms. She wore a long black cape, and at her side was a sword. When Manami looked upon the woman, her own eyes went wide when she realized…the woman was her!

Inside, Manami could tell that this woman had been suffering as much as she had her whole life. But this pain…it was different from what Manami felt. It was a different kind of pain. A pain that had been masked for almost all her life.

"You wanted to see me, my King?" the woman spoke to him.

"Yes. I have noticed you have been drawing away from me. Is there something the matter?" the man asked her. She avoided his eyes, looking down at the ground.

"My nightmares have been growing worse. I see darkness in all's hearts, and I see a power, a rage, unlike any other, my King. I see this kingdom falling into a dark abyss. And I see the one responsible," the woman spoke to him.

"Who is it?" the man approached the woman, reaching out to her, but she pulled away instantly. Her eyes rose up to him, and there were tears in them. At once, the man realized what was going on. "You saw me. I am the one responsible for the downfall of this kingdom."

"No! No, it's not you! You're a great king!" the woman cried.

"But your dreams have never been wrong before. They predicted the attack of the enemy, and it is because of you we are safe. But if this nightmare has frightened you, then it means there is nothing to stop it," he spoke to her. He turned from the woman, and started walking away. Manami could see the emotional pain in her eyes, and saw what she felt for the man. Love. She loved this man. Yet, she was hiding it. Why?

"My Lord, there is more," the woman spoke sadly. The king stopped in his tracks and turned towards the woman. "I see new life rising before the darkness. I saw it just before I saw this kingdom's fall. The Queen…she will give birth to a child. Yours, my Lord."

And there it was. The answer to Manami's question. This woman was hiding her love for him because he already loved another. He was married, and he was going to have a child. That was why. This woman was hurting because she knew her love meant nothing to him, and she knew it was wrong to care so deeply for him if he cared that way for another person. Poor girl.

At once, the dark, omniscient expression on the man's face quickly fade and was replaced with the look of happiness and excitement. He approached the woman at quick speed, and looked at her.

"Are you speaking the truth? Phiore will give life to a child?" he asked. The woman nodded.

"Yes, and her name shall be Chris. She will be a beautiful young girl, and an innocent born with a heart of light," Nami spoke to him. At once, the king swept the woman into his arms, and embraced her out of happiness. He then released her and rushed out of the room, yelling his gratitude to her. Once he disappeared into the darkness, the woman sighed sadly, and fell to her knees. Her body shook with pain and tears started streaming down her face. Manami could feel her pain run through her, and she herself began shedding tears of sympathy for her. She lost her true love, and now she was going to live on knowing that.

Suddenly, the palace and the woman suddenly faded into darkness, and Manami felt the warm, comforting sensation flood her once more. She gave into the feeling, and closed her eyes. Then she felt herself standing up. She opened her eyes, and could hear silence surround her. A beautiful silence, but when she looked around, she saw that the woman's predictions had come true. Manami was standing on a balcony shrouded with the pale moonlight that fell from the dark sky, but it was about the only thing that held light. Before the balcony was a large city that was darker than the night itself, and looked destroyed. Something horrible had happened, but Manami was too terrified to know what.

She looked, and saw the woman, Nami standing near the railing of the balcony, looking out sadly at the darkened city. It was so strange, seeing someone so beautiful so sad. Was that how Manami seemed almost all the time? Sad? Dark? Alone? She now saw what her friends saw. A depressed girl. The woman looked out at the darkness, and tears flooded down her face. She began sobbing over the railing, and soon, she spoke.

"I've lost everything. I've lost my home, my family…my one true love. There's no point in living anymore. I should die!"

At once, she grabbed her sword and unsheathed it, and held it parallel to her body. Fear struck through Manami, but before she could run forward and stop her, the blade cut through Nami's body, and blood started pouring through the wound. Nami gasped from the pain, and the sword fell out of her abdomen. It made a horrible, clanging noise on the balcony, and was covered with blood. Nami fell to her knees, clutching the wound she had made, and Manami could hear her sobbing.

"Please…f-forgive me, master…." With that, the woman fell forward against the railing, and her body became stiff and cold. She died. Manami felt a horrible pain rise through her, and whatever held her back, whatever had her paralyzed, was ripped from her, and she ran forward to the body. Tears streamed down her face, but before her fingers laid upon the hair of the new cadaver, it disappeared, and Manami was swimming through darkness again. Manami fell to her knees in the darkness, and began sobbing again. What was this that she had seen?

"_Do you now understand, little Manami...?"

* * *

_

The woods were dark and covered with shadows as the late afternoon came, and as the sunlight streamed onto the place where the young girl laid, unconscious, and bound by her hands and feet, she did not feel the warmth of the day suddenly surround her. As her captives turned from her, they did not realize this either. No one but those who knew her could tell what, and who, she truly was. A bringer of peace, and hostess to tranquility. Her artistic talents stretched through her fingertips, but they were aroused within her heart. She saw beauty, and peace, where ones would not expect. She was the host to a power unlike any other. A reincarnation of a warrior of violence, yet a pure incarnation of peace. Everyone saw that inside her, but she didn't see it within herself. Her heart longed to be free from the imprisonment that held her, not just physically, but mentally.

Her past is sad and dark, full of traumatic experiences and terrifying events. Not finding her father until age twelve, her brother running away when she was eight, her mother being thrown constantly into drunken rages, and witnessing murders before she was even a fully developed girl. Yet, through all the chaos and madness of her life, she was able to hold a pure and delicate heart. Deep inside, she regrets any wrongful mistakes she made in her life. She regrets hurting the ones she loved. But now, there was no stopping what was going to happen. She was going to die.

However, inside her, another being slept, and as the sun grazed across her skin, allowing a glow to impress onto her flesh and face, that being was slowly waking up. This being, having died thousands of years ago, is ready to appear for a final time, and show everyone, show the world, just how powerful love may be.

* * *

FD: Alright, that's all for now. I had a slight writer's block problem during the middle of this chapter, (in case you couldn't tell), so that's why it took so long to update again. I really appreciate all the reviews, and there's only a few more chapters left before the story official is done. There's a poll on my profile about whether or not I should make a sequal to this, as I normally do make sequels. So, do me a favor, please, and take that poll to let me know what I should do. Thanks again for reviewing! It means a lot! Peace!

Note: To take my poll, go to my homepage and click on polls. There will be two polls, click on the one named "sequels," and vote. Tell me whether "yes," that I should make a sequel, or "no," that I shouldn't. Main thing to keep in mind is that I'm not going to kill anyone like Manami or any of my main OC's, so that should help. Peace!


	22. Sadness and Sorrow

Chapter XXI: Sadness and Sorrow

* * *

"Manami!"

"Manami, where are you!"

"Manami! Come on out, kiddo!"

"Manami! Please, stop playing around!"

"Manami!"

"Manami!"

"Nami!"

Voices echoed throughout the woods as the teenagers drew closer to the spot where Sakuya had told them he saw something unusual. Daichi, who was the one that tailed far from the group, was distant from then. His mind kept wandering back to the night before, where Manami had come to him in the middle of the night and asked to be with him. But then in the morning, when he told her about how he dueled her, she spoke of having no memory of such thing, and told him how she quit dueling when she started putting her friends in comas. Then she broke up with him, because she feared of hurting him. Could there be two Manamis…?

No, that was a ludicrous theory. But he couldn't help but wonder on that suggestion. There have been times where Manami seemed to change completely, as Ryou explained. Her personalities changed constantly, from being the shy, self-conscious, and distant girl to a rebellious, hard-core, self-confident girl. There was no true physical difference, though. When Manami changed, she seemed to appear the same. The same, long, dark hair, the same lunar, sparkling, silver eyes. The only way to tell how she changed was…through her voice. Her voice would grow cold and more mature when she changed. Like the voice of a full-grown woman. Could Daichi be right? Could there really be two Manamis?

"Daichi, what are you thinking about back there!" Judai's voice brought Daichi back from his thoughts, and he blinked looking up. They all stopped and turned to him. Daichi didn't know how to tell them what he thought, but he had to try.

"What if…I know this is a ridiculous suggestion, but what if…there are two Manamis?" Daichi asked them. At once, shock and hysterical amusement appeared on their faces. Jun started cracking up, Asuka was giggling, Judai and Shou snickering, but Ryou…his eyes held no emotion, as if he was thinking about that as well.

"You're right, Daichi, that is ridiculous!" Jun laughed.

"Yeah! Daichi, there's no way there'd be two Manamis! It's like saying there's four Judai!" Asuka laughed.

"Yeah, she's right! Wait—hey!" Judai scolded her.

_However ridiculous that may be, it is true,_ Sakuya thought to himself, staring after the trees in front of them. Shadows danced across the ground playfully, and he found himself falling into a daydream. A memory of when he was younger, when he still lived with his mother and Manami, he remembered how he would always find Manami in the park at sunset, playing on the swings, all alone. She always seemed to be alone half the time. Even with the spirit of Nami inhabiting her, Manami seemed distant and far away from everyone. Her eyes always showed that. They always revealed this somewhat dark and depressed side of her that was well hidden beneath the surface. Long ago…when Sakuya saw that in Manami, could it be the depressed and saddened spirit of Nami that he saw?

As they continued walking through the woods, searching for her, Sakuya turned back to Manami's friends, and saw how concerned and worried they were. He saw how much concern and fear were in the blond girl's eyes. Tenjoin Asuka seemed to truly care for his little sister, as well as Yuki Judai and Marufuji Shou. Manjyoume Jun always was concerned, seeing as how his brothers were deeply involved in her life. Marufuji Ryou seemed to have a deep interest in her, one that he seemed to hide and mask, but a few signs shown themselves over his cold and hard exterior. The one person that Sakuya was proud of his sister for knowing was Misawa Daichi.

That boy was quick-minded and intelligent. He seemed to treat his sister fairly and respectfully, as if she was more than just a girlfriend. Being an older brother, Sakuya worried and doubted that any boy would be able to treat Manami they way she should be treated, but Daichi has shown that, and more. Perhaps he was too quick to judge anyone, for that matter. They continued on into the woods, until Shou saw a small glimmer in the falling light. Sakuya saw it as well, but it was Judai who pointed it out.

"Hey, what's that over there?" he cried out, pointing to the farthest part in the woods where something large and white stood not far from where they were. That was it! That was where he had spotted the helicopter! That was where Manami was!

"Come on!" Immediately, all of them started running towards that spot, hoping that Manami was alright and that they would be able to save her. But as they drew closer, their hopes started dissipating at what they were about to see….

* * *

Blood tainted the young girl's tongue as she awoke from her unconscious slumber. Her eyes drifted open to where she could feel warmth along her face, and could see the woods clearly. Her vision blurred briefly, but then it cleared, and she was able to see just where she was. Memories flooded into her for a brief moment, and she remembered how she got there, how her arms and legs were bound behind, and how she couldn't move. Only one name came to mind.

_John Abruzzi…._

She lifted her eyes to the large white chopper before her, standing in front of it, talking amongst themselves, were several men in black suits, one she recognized as the one person who has been helping her and taking care of her the past two years. Glaring after them, and remembering that she was gagged by rope, she tried to move her body so she was sitting up right. It was difficult, especially since she couldn't afford to make a sound, but she managed to roll in the grass close to the trunk of a large, sturdy tree, and push her back up along it. Her hair occasionally got caught on the sap, but she couldn't deal with it right now.

Finally, she was sitting up, her legs spread out in front of her, and her arms tied behind her. All of a sudden, she somehow felt stronger. She didn't even realize there was a large bruise on the side of her face from where Abruzzi had hit her earlier. She ignored the flushing pain in her face, and pressed her bound wrists up against the trunk, glaring after the men with silver eyes full of rage and hate.

How could this have happened! She trusted that man! He had her life in his hands several times before! He could have done away with her when he had the chance! So why didn't he? Why didn't he just kill her so many times before instead of kidnapping her and tying her up? Did he want her to suffer? Did he want to torment her? Manami thought hard of any particular reason why Abruzzi would do this now instead of before. She shut her eyes, and concentrated hard on what, and why, he was doing.

Her mind briefly wandered to that night she returned to her father's house for a surprise visitation. She had known her father was quite busy working for that elite company rivaling Kaiba Corps., and he had been trying so hard, she thought a surprise visit would cheer him up. However, when she walked up the driveway and saw that her father's black Range Rover and navy blue Catalac was not there, she thought she'd let herself in and surprise him when he gets home with a nice dinner. However, her father's neighbor had been in their front yard, working, when Manami approached her. Mrs. Yoshi had been a close friend of her father's, watching over the house while he was gone.

"Yoshi-san! Have you seen my father?" Manami had asked the elderly woman.

"I thought he was already inside the house. I saw some men go in there earlier, probably some of his co-workers," Mrs. Yoshi spoke. Some men? Father never had any people over while he was gone.

A weird sensation flooded into Manami's gut as she approached the front porch. Not wanting to invade on something that was probably going on inside, Manami leapt off the porch, and dashed around the house to the back yard. Normally, since she and her father have been reunited, Manami would use a special entrance/exit technique in order to either escape from her mother, or go out and meet some friends. There was a small leverage that allowed Manami to see into the kitchen through the window without being sighted by anyone, and by climbing up the tree alongside the back of the house, she could easily slip into her room without being detected. As long as her window was open.

Climbing onto the level by means of the help of some branches, Manami leaned close to the house windows, and peered through the corner of the window, looking directly into the kitchen. There, she saw several men in suits crowded around each other, and, keeping her breathing soft and not making any noise, she was able to hear what they were saying inside.

"I can't believe what Charles has been doing lately? Correcting the Mafia? Our mob has been doing its job perfectly since his grandfather became boss over it!" one man yelled. They were gathered around something, and for a while, Manami wasn't able to see it, but she could see moving.

Then one of the man moved away to reveal what it was. Three people were tied together, blindfolded, gagged with duck tape, and rope surrounding their bodies as they fought and twitched in order to get free. One was a man, elderly with thinning dark hair and dark face. One was a woman with burgundy locks and light face. The last one was what terrified Manami the most. It was just a little kid, probably two years younger than herself, with dark hair and light face. The little kid twisted and fought within the ropes, bound with his parents. The men in suits continued to talk.

"Alright, well, we'll just have to get the message across one way or another," the man who spoke this stepped into the circle, and Manami could see the embroidered coat of arms of the Mafia on the front of his suit. His pale complexion shown clearly in the light of the kitchen, as well as what he held. He resembled a ghost in the black suit, and when he lifted the item, fear and horror thrummed through Manami. It was a gun. Not just any gun. Manami recognized it as being a single, .54-caliber, 14-clip revolver. It was the same gun her father had shown her days ago to be aware of residing in the house. He told her that it was the signature weapon the mobsters of the Mafia used.

"Wait, you're not going to kill the kid, are you, Guiterrez?" one of the other men spoke.

"Sure hell I am. Don't want any witnesses to this crime. The kid will be able to testify against us, and we don't want to go to prison, do we, boys? Besides, it's high-time that son of a bitch Akatsuki knew just what type of business we mean!"

The man raised the gun, and Manami found herself acting on instinct. Ignoring all complete common sense of knowing she would become involved, and that they would probably kill her, she jumped off the leverage, and ran towards the back door that led into the kitchen. She grabbed the handle, and swung the door open with full force, and tried to sprint into the kitchen to stop the men, to save the little kid. But it was too late….

Three forceful, echoing BANGS echoed throughout the house, quickly followed by a horrible spurt of scarlet along the walls and floors of the kitchen, Manami stood there in the kitchen doorway, dumbstruck, and frightened. She did not even realize that some blood had landed on herself all the way in the opposite direction of where the three bodies now laid. Shaking, trembling with fear and hate towards the men, she started to feel tears crawl into her eyes and fall down her pale cheeks. Staring with horror at the crime scene, she did not hear, nor expect, someone to see her there.

"Hey, it's Akatsuki's kid!" one man yelled out, snapping Manami back to reality. She looked up, shocked to see all the men staring at her, and the man with the gun raising it to her.

"Yeah…what's-her-name…Nami!" the youngest man spoke. After that, all Manami remembered was feeling a horrible jolt of pain before darkness flooded her sight and her body.

The next thing she knew, she had woken up in a cardboard box in an alley not to far away from that scene. When she had calmed down and regained strength, she called her father and told him everything. She returned to her mother's home, and told her whole family what she had seen. And she never forgot the name of the man who had killed that innocent family. Guiterrez. Joseph Guiterrez, the one man who looked like a ghost in her father's kitchen.

As Manami opened her eyes now in the present day, the memory fading away, she now realized what it was the Abruzzi wanted. He wanted the name of the other people she had told she was there, the other people who knew that the Mafia was at her father's house. And there was only one person. One person who knew that Manami was there and that strange men had entered the home. Mrs. Yoshi Yumagata. However, Manami was never going to reveal that identity to them. In the sake of the innocent, she knew that she carried with her the lives of innocent people on her shoulders, including the lives of her friends….

"Ah, I see our little victim is awake," came the voice of John Abruzzi in front of her. For a brief moment, she seemed too stunned to take in affect, but then she blinked, and looked up to see the man approach her, and for a brief moment, she thought time had stopped, but then the gun came down hard against her face, causing another large, swollen bruise to form on her cheek.

The rope tightened around her mouth as Manami tried to scream in pain, but it didn't happen. She glared up at him, her eyes burning with tears. Manami had never felt so angry and so vengeful in her life. Not even towards the people who truly made her life miserable. This man had not only betrayed her, but had betrayed her family. He was a trusted person by all of them, and he was betraying them to serve his purpose for the Mafia.

"Your father was a fool, believing you could changed decades of what has been our way of life. A mobster gang, Mafia, and crime club, he thought he could change what his grandfather has worked so hard to build. He thought he could change the lives of thousands of mobsters, and not realize he was jeapordizing his own life! And now you had to get involve, and testify against us. You could have ruled the Mafia with lesions at your side. You would be wealthy and powerful, feared by all men. But you betrayed us, little Manami, and now, the one thing you tried to do right, will betray you," Abruzzi laughed maniacally in her face. Still glaring, Manami tried to pull away from him, but he caught her.

He grabbed her arm, and shoved her into the ground, where she groaned from pain on collision. He sneered at the fallen girl, the way so many of his victims have appeared before him and other mob members. He pulled out the signature revolver from his pocket, and aimed it at her back, prepared to take fire whenever the urge came up. He enjoyed seeing her like this. Pitied, weak, and broken. In his opinion, it was how every rebellious soul should appear, knowing their place in life, like a whipped dog. He saw the tears streaming down the young girl's face, seeing the pain, which had been hidden for so long, finally surfacing and revealing itself. Manami could feel it inside herself, and knew that the moment had come. She would die, and no one would know what through her mind at that moment.

_Sakuya, Mikuru, mother, father, I love you all so much. I just hope you would be happier without me. Asuka, Judai, Ryou, Jun, and Shou…you guys were great friends to me. I don't know how I could ever repay you. Chousaku, Shoji, you looked out for me when I needed you. I will never be able to replace such amazing and wonderful friends. Daichi…I…I'm sorry. I never meant to hurt you, or anyone else. I love you, Daichi, and if I could, I would probably spend my life with you…._

"_You're not going to die, Manami….I'll make sure of that…."_

At that moment, a wonderful, glorious sensation spread through all of Manami's body. It was warm, sweet, gentle, and inviting. Like as if the light of the sun was running through her veins, into her mind. She felt at peace, full of life, and full of spirit. She felt like as if nothing could harm, nothing could hurt her. She felt this wonderful sensation take over her mind, and a bright light shown before her eyes, blinding her. From this light, a soft, woman's voice spoke in a comforting, assuring way.

"_You will never die, Manami. As long as I live, your life is protected…by your love, and by my strength…."

* * *

_

FD: Alright you guys, I know it took me a long time to update, and I'm terribly sorry about it, but I went through a huge writer's block problem, and I started working on quizilla a lot more, so it took time away from fanfiction. Anyway, this chapter is up, please enjoy it, and remember to review. I love it when people review. I don't mind constructive criticism, just not flames. Okay, anyways, like I said, I'm sorry, I updated, finally, and I hope you enjoy. I'm also working on a sequal to this story, as we speak, so, if you can forgive me for taking so long, I'd be happy to post it up. Peace!


	23. The Rise of the Sprite

Chapter XXII: The Rise of the Sprite

* * *

The wonderful sensation that flooded through Mamani quickly dissipated as she suddenly laid still on the ground, motionless, eyes closed, and, for what Abruzzi hoped, unconscious. She didn't move, she didn't make a sound, her eyes were closed, and her face was pale. She showed all signs of being unconscious, and Abruzzi hoped she'd remain that way. However, just to be sure, he leaned down and placed two fingers on her neck, feeling for a pulse. He found it, and it was steady, calm, a sure sign that she was. He stood back up and turned towards the other men. 

"Alright, let's get her in the chopper before anyone shows up," he told them. They hurried over to pick up Manami and carry her into the helicopter, but as they did so, an unknown voice cried out from within the trees.

"Manami!"

At once, Abruzzi looked up to see a group of kids huddled around at the entrance to the clearing. One of them he recognized as Manami's older brother, Sakuya, and the other as Chousaku and Shoji's younger brother, Jun. What were these kids doing here? Had they come to the rescue of Manami?

"What are you kids doing here?" Abruzzi growled low in his throat at them.

"Abruzzi? What the hell's going on here!" Jun yelled, stepping into view. His eyes, full of concern, turned from the man to the helicopter to the other men, then to the unconscious Manami on the ground, and then to the visible revolver in the man's hands. Fear struck his face instantly. "Why?"

"Isn't that that one man who Jun said is taking care of Manami?" Judai asked.

"Yeah, that's John Abruzzi. But what the hell is he doing with Manami?" Sakuya glared angrily at the man, who only sneered.

"How foolish of Manami to get involved the ones she loved. Her brother's here, so I can kill two Akatsukis at once, and hunt out her idiotic father," Abruzzi growled, and he pointed the gun at Manami's lifeless body.

"Let her go," came the voice of the dark blue boy from behind the crowd. Ryou stepped forward, anger and rage pulsating through his eyes, as well as the dark haired boy beside him, Daichi. He was more terrified by the appearance of Manami on the ground, unconscious, two large bruises on her face, one even swelled up to where it started to bleed. It was horrible seeing her like that, and whatever this man did to her, Daichi was going to make him pay. Anger and rage pulsated throughout his veins, boiling his blood to such an extent, he felt that he would erupt in anger.

"You kids are in no position to be making demands," Abruzzi spoke, raising the gun to them, his eyes holding no emotion, but a serious, cold glare that told them he was not fooling around. He was prepared to kill them all if he needed to. Daichi kept looking from the gun to Manami, trying hard to ignore the growing rage in his abdomen long enough to formulate a plan. If this man had a gun, there was no doubt that the others did, as well. If they made any sudden moves or noises, they would be put at gunpoint by five others. He had to think fast. He had to get Manami out of there and Abruzzi to the police.

Suddenly, a thought erupted into his mind as he looked at Manami. He stepped closer to the others, and spoke softly to them.

"I have an idea…" and he told them what his idea was, and to just play along.

"You kids aren't going anywhere, now. Thanks to your friend, Manami, you'll all face the same fate as she will," Abruzzi sneered. He raised the gun towards Asuka's head, but Daichi stepped out in front of her, right into the bullet's range. "So, you want to die first, boy?"

"No, I'm here to tell you that by killing Manami, you'll be making a very appalling decision. After all, Manami knows well enough to both save and destroy your mobster gang," Daichi spoke. "After all, that's why you want her, don't you?"

"Stop bluffing, you ungrateful bastard. I'll whip that bitch Manami into telling me everything, and then I'll end her misery, just like how I'm about to end yours," Abruzzi sneered, as he cocked the gun, and pointed it directly to Daichi's head.

"Are you sure I'm bluffing, and are you sure that it is a wise decision to make? After all, we are Manami's friends. How do you know she hasn't told us anything?" Daichi spoke.

"Daichi, what are you doing!" Asuka cried from behind him. Daichi turned to her, and gave her an assuring smile. He then turned back to the man.

"If you decide to kill us, you'll never get the information you want from Manami. And if you kill Manami, you'll never learn what you need to hear from us," Daichi spoke. "It's a Catch 22, Abruzzi. Kill us, or kill Manami. Either way, you'll lose."

Abruzzi glared at the younger boy, and then, for a brief moment, pondered the situation for a little bit. Then he grinned a sinister smile. "I have a better idea, boy. You'll tell me what it is that Manami told you, or…."

Ha snapped his fingers, and at once, several men jumped out from the shadows, including the ones who had ran to Manami, and grabbed the others kids. Some of them instantly pulled out weapons and guns, and pointed them towards their bodies. Daichi was also grabbed by a large man, who grabbed his arms, and wrapped his arm around Daichi's throat, suffocating him. Abruzzi approached him, and pointed the gun at his head.

"Or I'll blow your fucking head off," he spoke darkly and sinisterly. Daichi was now caught in a trap, not only could he not save Manami, he couldn't even save himself. He had been bluffing. He had been trying to tell them whatever he could in order to get Manami and them free.

_I'm sorry, Manami. I tried…._

"Just as I thought. You were bluffing, kid. And because of that, you'll die first," Abruzzi stepped back, though, trying to get a better aim at him. Daichi stared into the barrel of the gun, and could feel tears in his eyes. His friends looked on with fear and gasps.

"No! Daichi!" Asuka cried out.

"Let him go! He was just trying to save his girlfriend!" Judai yelled out.

At that moment, though, no matter how much his friends screamed and yelled out, there was no escaping it. Daichi was going to die here and now, trying to save the girl he loved. The loud BANG echoed throughout the woods, and Daichi awaited the eminent death approaching, waiting for the horrible, brief pain of the bullet entering his body, and killing him….

However, that pain never came. He opened his eyes in shock, and saw before him a tall girl with long, black hair and glaring, dark silver eyes. The shadows within her eyes danced with the dark, evil presence that entered her body, along with the rage and anger that surfaced and flooded her. Daichi blinked, not believing his eyes, but he looked at the girl, who was once unconscious.

"Ma…nami?" he muttered. The girl turned to him, and he noticed that she had her fist in front her face, clenching something tight in her grip. She opened her hand, and dropped the object to the ground, revealing the dark gold bullet that had erupted from the gun's end.

"No, I'm not Manami," she spoke in a low, cold tone. That voice wasn't hers, but it was familiar. Daichi recognized it as the same voice that escaped Manami's lips the night they dueled. She was right, he was right. This wasn't Manami. This was someone else. Someone who was her, but also wasn't. Another side to her.

"Nami?" The girl smiled at him, but turned to the man she once trusted, the one that her hoste trusted.

"I suggest you release my friends, Abruzzi, before you regret it," she spoke coldly to him, yet no emotion rose in her voice. He laughed at her words.

"I am not taking any orders from a bitch," he spoke. Sakuya saw an eyebrow twitch at the insult, but there was no response that escaped her mouth. She just glared angrily at the man, and Sakuya knew who it was standing before them. It was Nami. What he didn't know was that this would be the last time he ever saw Manami again….

"Now, tell me, who else witnessed that crime three years ago," Abruzzi demanded of her. She didn't answer. She just glared at him, her eyes cold and shadows dancing angrily within them.

"You have no chance of knowing that. And you have no chance of protecting yourself. So I warn you, yet again, let my friends go!" Nami ordered of the man. She took a step towards him, and he backed up. At once he fired the gun, and the second loud eruption echoed, as well, through the trees. Everyone gasped as they watched with horror on their faces.

"Manami!"

However, Nami's hand quickly swiped at the air, and then revealed what she now held. The bullet! Everyone stared in surprise at what she had done. That was amazing. No mortal being could be able to do that!

"Your weapons are useless against me," she spoke coldly. "If you try to kill me, you would only be wasting ammunition. If you try and kill my friends, I will catch and destroy each one of your minions. Now, do as I say, and let them go."

"You can't boss me around, Manami. I hold your friends at gunpoint. I hold their lives, and yours, in my hands. You can't be threatening me! I make demands here!" Abruzzi seemed to be on the verge of insanity as he held the gun up to Nami's head. "Now, tell me! Who else knows that we were at your father's house? Who else saw us?"

Nami only glared at him, and in a brief moment she was gone, however, she reappeared in front of Abruzzi, and grabbed his arm holding the gun. Her eyes were so cold and serious, they were like sharp, piercing icycles, preparing to stab anyone or anything. Startled, Abruzzi began to fight her.

"Hey! Let me go, you bitch!" he spat at her, but she did not. She only tightened her grip. So tight, Daichi and the others heard it crack and shatter beneath her hand. Abruzzi let out a yell of pain that echoed louder through the trees than the gunshot. "STOP!"

"Not until you let my friends go!" Nami demanded. When Abruzzi didn't respond, paralyzed by fear, Nami twisted his arm painfully, and turned it behind him, not only breaking his arm this way, but also because of her grip on it, she also crushed his bone. He released the gun moments later, and it clattered on the ground, oblivious to her attention.

"Boss!" the minions at once released her friends without his command, and rushed in order to stop Nami, but her eyes narrowed in a deadly way. As they lunged at her, still keeping her hold on Abruzzi's arm, she twisted her side to where she kicked and struck each man either in the chest or in the stomach by her foot, causing the wind to be knocked out of each of them, and they were thrown into the trees behind them. Then Nami turned her attention to Abruzzi, who was wincing and cowering in pain, his arm still in her grip and twisted behind his back.

"This is for the three innocent lives your men killed three years ago!" Nami growled sinisterly, and with incredible strength, strength that no one could ever imagine her having, about a hundred-fold of what they would normally suspect, she lifted the three-hundred-pound man over her head with a thunderous grunt. All her friends gasped and gawked at her strength. This couldn't be the same girl who was tied and bound on the ground moments ago.

Nami, with a tremendous roar, she threw the man to the tree in front of her, and Abruzzi let out a scream of pain as his body collided into the tree with a horrible SMACK that echoed through the forest. Her forest watched in both awe and fear for themselves at what she had done. This was not the Manami they knew. The Manami they knew never used violence, was kind, sweet, gentle, even to those who have wronged her. This wasn't Manami. This was someone else. Someone entirely different.

They watched in horror as Nami advanced onto the man, briefly leaning down to pick up the gun on the ground, and then continued to walk towards the whimpering man. Everyone knew what she was about to do, and Daichi couldn't live, knowing that Manami had killed someone. She never would do that. As Nami raised the gun, he knew he had to act fast. He knew he had to stop her, someway, somehow, but that was it. He didn't know how.

Memories flashed into his mind of Manami quickly. He remembered sitting on the beach with Manami, talking about a picture she had drew and giving her some advice. He remembered talking to Manami in front of Osiris Red dormitory. He remembered Manami flirting with him in the Ra Yellow dining room, and then racing him out on the beach that same night. He remembered confronting her about the boy she liked at school, only to discover it was him. He remembered confronting her about the drugs she had been taking, and her confiding him about her being on Witness Protection. He remembered their first kiss, and the night that they and their friends were together that night in this clearing. He remembered how he saved her from committing suicide, and he remembered how she snuck up into his room just to spend the night with him. He even remembered the dance they went to and how happy she seemed after she had reunited with her older brother, Sakuya. He even remembered the morning she broke up with him….He faintly remembered the duel against her….That's when it hit him! This girl before him was the same girl he dueled! This was Manami, but a different side of her! The side that was about to kill a man! He had to act fast!

Nami raised the gun to Abruzzi's head, and glared down at him, eyes empty of all emotion but rage. "And this, John Abruzzi, is for ruining my life and lives of my brothers and parents," she growled, and she was about to pull the trigger, activating the echoing eruption of the gun, when Daichi leapt to his feet and ran forward towards the girl.

"Stop!"

The next thing Nami knew, arms had wrapped around her, preventing her any movement, and had stunned her mentally. She froze, not believing what was going on or happening. She looked ahead blankly, dumbstruck by the action of her hostess' boyfriend, and could feel his heartbeat along her back. He was scared. That feeling she hadn't felt in thousands of years. She lowered her head as he spoke to her.

"Please, I don't want you to be guilty for murder," he spoke, and his words were choking in his throat. He was terrified. The gun slipped from her hand, landing on the ground, and she could feel tears roaming into her eyes. She briefly remembered the fear and pain that her beloved master had felt long ago for the loss of his city. Now, this boy was feeling a similar fear and pain of losing his love. If only her master felt that way for her when she died….

"Alright," she spoke softly. Daichi released her, and she turned to him with a smile. A warm, assuring smile. The smile that belonged to Manami. "I won't do it, just for you."

Daichi returned the smile, the fear rushing out of his face, and the faces of her friends. She smiled at all of them, but didn't expect Daichi to embrace her like how he did the next moment. Was it possible that he knew, like Sakuya? Did he know that Nami resided within Manami? And was it possible…that he loved her as well?

These thoughts were interrupted as behind her, Abruzzi had reached for the gun and aimed it at her back, directly behind her heart. Daichi had seen this, but didn't act quick enough.

The gunshot echoed throughout the trees, creating an omniscient presence, soon followed by a scream that echoed throughout the island, causing fear and death-like concern to strum through the friends of Manami as they looked at the crime that had just been committed….

* * *

FD: Dun-dun-dun. Lol. Anyway, that's it for this chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I tried to do the best I could with it, but I think the ending went quite well. Leaves a huge cliffhanger that I seriously wanted you guys to suffer for! (Muahahahahaha!) (stares) Come on you guys, you should know me better than that by now. I'm only joking…sort of...Anyway, please remember to review, and I'll try to update A.S.A.P. I hope you liked this chapter! Peace! 


	24. The Broken Heart Heals

Chapter XXIII: The Broken Heart Heals

The gunshot was one of the scariest sounds ever heard that day, as the moment that took place during that terrorized Manami from within. She did not expect what happened, nor did she expect the injured John Abruzzi to pick up the gun in which Nami had dropped, aim it at her while her back was turn, and fire it. She did not expect to feel the searing pain in her side as she was pushed aside by Daichi, nor did she expect to hear the scream of pain that followed along it. She had landed on her back on the ground when she heard the cry, and when she looked up, she saw a cringing Daichi clutching his now bleeding arm.

"Daichi!" at once, Nami rushed to his side, and looked up to see Abruzzi holding the gun towards her with his other arm, glaring in a deadly manner.

"This time, I won't miss," he growled. Anger, rage, and hatred thrummed heavily through Nami's veins as she stood up. Her eyes stretched to resemble the eyes of a beast, and she ran forward toward the crippled man. She swung one leg up, her heel hitting the back of his hand. She heard it crack, but it was an even more pleasing sound to hear the gun clatter in the grass. Then she swung her body around, bringing the other leg up, and with another ear-splitting crack, her heel collided into the man's head, cracking his skull. He stared blankly at her for a brief moment before falling to the ground, blood trickling down the side of his head. He was unconscious, and there was no way he was going to be able to get up after that.

"That was for Daichi," Nami spat at the man's body, and, still furious, she turned to the bleeding boy, still clutching his arm. She saw tears running down his face, and she approached him, falling to his level. She eyed the wound with eyes full of fear, and then looked up into his eyes, seeing that familiar, coy smile of his.

"It's nothing. Just a wound, that's all. I'm glad you're alright," he spoke. She didn't buy the lie. She eyed his bleeding arm again, and could see the bullet had penetrated it deeply. There was only way to get it out.

"Let me see it," she demanded of him. "I need you to remove your blazer in order for me to do this."

It seemed as if he would be unable to do so without taking his hand off the wound, which he was doing in order to repress the bleed. However, she removed her own blazer, revealing a high neck black tanktop, and tore at the hem of her blazer, tearing it into a long strip of cloth, strong enough to repress the bleeding until Daichi received medical help. As she did so, she looked down at her wrists where the ropes had cut into her hostess' flesh. She didn't know how she got free, just that all of a sudden, the ropes were so loose around her, she could easily slip free.

"Daichi! Daichi, are you okay?" Judai and Shou had come running towards the two of them, soon followed by Asuka and Jun. They all leaned down around them, and Daichi tried to appear strong and brave before them, as if he wasn't in pain at all.

"I'm alright," he spoke.

"You're a liar, Daichi. We can all see that you're in pain, so stop acting like a big tough guy just for me," Nami snapped at him. She didn't know why she was so angry with him. Perhaps it was because he had thrown her aside and allowed himself to get hurt instead of her. Maybe because he sacrificed himself for her life. Those were wonderful things. It proved that he loved her. So…why was she so angry? Daichi, however, didn't take it into offense. It appeared that he was expecting her to act like that.

"Yeah, alright, fine. I just didn't want to see you get hurt," he spoke to her. He looked at her, and in his eyes, she saw a feeling she had never seen before. She didn't even see that in her master's eyes long ago, so it was unfamiliar to her. It made her feel shy, scared, happy, and mad all at the same time. It made her heart race within her chest, her body tremble, and her palms became sweaty. She looked away, trying to avert her eyes. Why was she acting this way? Why did she suddenly feel so strange now? Why was he looking at her like that? Why did he have to look at her like that? Why did he have to sacrifice himself for her?

Ignoring the sinking feeling in her stomach, Nami leaned forward and helped him remove his blazer, which was covered in his blood. As she did so, she got a feeling of what it felt like to be Manami. Her hands trailed his arms, and for a brief moment, she could feel his racing pulse under his skin. She ignored this, and looked at his injured arm. She suddenly felt really nervous at what she was about to do, but she knew it was the only way to get the bullet out of him.

"Forgive me for this, Daichi," she spoke softly. Daichi was confused by her words, but when she took his arm, he realized what she was going to do, and tried to resist.

"Don't. I don't want you to get hurt," he spoke trying to twist his arm away, but her grip tightened, although not as severe as before when she attacked John Abruzzi.

"I'd rather kill myself than allow myself to see you suffer in pain," she spoke, and lowered her face to the wound. A light blush rose to Daichi's face as he turned away from this, embarrassed more by the fact that his friends were witnessing to this. He briefly remembered that wonderful moment in the shower he had with her, and he also prayed that his friends would not realize his strange reactions, either. He shut his eyes as he felt her lips surround the opening of the wound, and he could feel the painful sting of the bullet being sucked out of his body. After a brief moment, he finally felt the pull as she removed herself from his arm, the golden bullet clung in between her teeth. She winced, and spat it out into her hand.

Then she picked up the strip of cloth she had torn from her blazer, and began to tie it around the wound. Tightly securing it, her eyes were lowered, and it was then that he realized she was averting him. That's when he finally decide to ask it.

"Who are you?" he asked her. She stopped, hesitating on how to answer. Her hands fell to her lap, and she looked cautiously at everyone else before lowering her eyes. "I know you're not Manami, so I want to know just who you really are."

She didn't look at him, not exactly knowing how to answer his question. There were so many questions of her own that had not yet been answered. For instance…who was she really? She had faint memories of her past, memories that have been shared with her other, her other half, Manami. Manami had seen these memories, had seen the life that she once had. But no sense came from them, no true answers. Just that Nami was once a powerful warrior for a great king whom she must have loved deeply. No true answers of who she was, where she came, nor what her life was like. Just a few images, a few pictures, puzzle pieces, that never truly made sense to her. She looked up at him, trying hard to think of an answer for him.

"I…I am Manami. I just guess you haven't seen me like this," Nami spoke, trying to sound as close as Manami as she could. But she found it far more difficult than to be expected. Manami was kinder, softer, and more gentle when she spoke. Nami was not used to that. She was not used to showing concern and worry for someone else, at least, not physically. Inside herself, Nami always felt alone and scared for others, as well as herself. Nami smiled gently at Manami's friends, and could feel, within the depths of her mind, the soft, gentle tears between their minds. Maybe it was time to let Manami go….

"You guys have to get him to the hospital ward immediately," Nami turned towards the others, and gave a confused look towards Manami's brother, Sakuya. He returned the look, but didn't understand. What was she thinking? Nami stood up, and watched as her friends obeyed, taking Daichi by the arms, and leading him away towards the school. As soon as they were gone and out of the woods, Nami turned towards Sakuya, who was the only one left.

"What are you doing?" he asked the woman. She looked at him, and those silver, shadowed eyes were full of tears.

"I'm going to do what I should've done long ago. You're the only one who knows I exist, so I'm only going to reveal myself to you. There'd be no possible way for me to explain who I am to them. Especially not Daichi," her eyes appeared distant and saddened as she said these words, and Sakuya now understood.

"Do you love him like how Manami loves him?" Sakuya asked, feeling his heart break as he said this, awaiting for her answer.

"I…I don't know. The only one I've truly loved is my master. Maybe…the feelings and spirit of Manami are starting to influence me," Nami spoke to him, and she looked up at the man. "I've never felt so strange in all my life. Manami is truly a unique woman, she's influenced and had a positive reaction on everyone in her life. I've never seen such a brilliant and gentle woman. She's no human mortal. I do believe she may even be…an angel…."

"You're the angel, Nami. You're always watching over my sister, always protecting her. You know what makes her happy, you know what hurts her so deeply, and you protect her from anything that may harm her. You protect her like a mother," Sakuya spoke. "You are the angel here, Nami."

Nami looked at him, and the tears fell softly against her cheek, as she realized that he may be right. She loved protecting Manami from anything. She loved watching over the young woman, seeing her life fill with enrichment and enchanting influences. Manami was truly a unique being, and Nami saw a lot of herself within Manami. These gentle tears fell to the ground, and Nami held out her hand, catching them in the center of her palm. These tears…they weren't hers….They were Manami's. She was crying inside, and because of her influence of Nami, she was crying, herself.

_Don't cry anymore, Manami….Everything will be okay…._

"I really appreciate all that you've done for me, Sakuya. You understand me, and you listen to me. I appreciate that, and I want you to know that your sister will no longer be hurting anymore. Her love still lives, and a part of me shall always be within her. Don't let her get hurt, like how I have," Nami pleaded to the man. Sakuya nodded, and watched as the woman turned, and disappeared into the shadows of the woods, darkness engulfing her figure completely.

* * *

"_Manami…don't cry anymore….Everything will be okay….You're never alone in your heart…."_

Manami laid on the surface of the darkness, staring up at the shadows above her, watching the black abyss consume her completely. She sighed, feeling her soul slowly drift into the darkness, getting lost within the abyss around her. She never felt so…strange. Alone, empty, sad, angry, complete, loved, relaxed….Those feelings had drained out of her, and now, she just felt…empty. Like there was nothing in her. Why did she feel this way? Why was she here in the first place? Where was she? Where did the voice go? She felt alone in this abyss.

"_Manami…don't be afraid anymore…."_

She never was truly afraid in this place. It was like a shelter to her, making her feel safe and secure, although confused and startled. She felt warm in this place, like…before….

She found herself seeing a faint image of a memory in the dark abyss above her. The shadows shifted, and lightened, and before Manami realized it, she was staring up at a memory of when she was young. She saw herself, a mere child of four, with black hair in pigtails, and gentle, relaxed silver eyes, resting her head on the lap of an older woman, a woman with long, curly caramel locks, and gentle green eyes. Her mother back then….When Manami was so young, she always found comfort and shelter in her mother's arms. It didn't matter whether she was mad at her or not, Manami always considered her mother to be wonderful, and caring. She just wished her life could still be like that….

The shadows shifted again, revealing another image from a memory of long ago. Manami sighed gently as she saw the image had her when she was six in her older brother's room, at a time when Sakuya was still there, but was so obsessed with music. She saw herself sitting on the floor of his bedroom, while a younger Sakuya played his guitar and sang one of his favorite songs to her.

"Memories aren't just where you leave them. Drag the waters till the depth give up its dead. What did you expect to find? Was it something you left behind? Don't you remember anything I said when I said, 'Don't fall away, and leave me to myself.' 'Don't fall away,' and leave love bleeding in my hands, in my hands, again. Leave love bleeding in my hands, in my hands. Lobe lies bleeding."

Manami remembered how strange the song sounded to her, but when she heard the song being played at a rock concert, she understood now why Sakuya sang it, and now you like it, yourself. It was a cool song to hear at times. The shadows shifted again, revealing a memory image of when Manami was ten, and she saw herself sitting on the front stoop with her little brother, Mikuyo. They were watching their drunken mother yell in the streets, while her brother sobbed beside her. Manami turned towards her brother, and held him, comforting him. Manami missed her little brother so much, it tore her heart to pieces watching this. The present day Manami laid in the darkness, watching these memories flash before her eyes, tears running down along her face. Her life has changed so much since then, it was hard to understand, or believe, any of it.

The shadows shifted again, to a more loving memory. Manami was eleven, and she was in her father's house, playing a card game with the only man who ever mattered to her so much in her life. Her father. Her father was kidding and joking around, making her laugh, and eventually, she won the game. Manami smiled at this memory, realizing that her father had been the only one back then to make her smile and laugh so freely. He meant a lot to her, and she missed him terribly. She remembered how her father would hold her, and make everything that upset her and terrified her go away. She couldn't stand the pain of being apart from him again, of being apart from her family, and she couldn't make it go away.

For one last time, the shadows shifted again, revealing another memory, but this one struck Manami far deeper than the others. She saw all her friends she met here at Duel Academy. Asuka, Judai, Shou, Jun, Ryou, and…Daichi….All of them were laughing, smiling, and Manami's heart shattered as she realized they had made her feel safe and secure, far more than she ever felt these past years. Her friends had made her feel happy, and Manami's body felt so warm around them. She felt like she belonged. She wasn't so depressed and unhappy when she was with them.

Manami laid on the darkness, tears flooding down her face, and she turned her head away from the memories. How? How could her life be ending so horribly? She hasn't even been able to ask Daichi to forgive her for what she did to him. Suddenly, though, the voice came back to the shadows. It only sounded closer, and approaching.

"You shouldn't be trying to hide how you feel for them. You should tell your friends everything, that way you don't have to carry the burden alone…."

_I've always been alone. This is no big deal. They'll be happy with me gone…._

"Do you honestly believe that?"

At that moment, a bright, pure light flashed from above Manami, and she looked up to see a woman walking towards her. This woman…was the same woman she saw earlier. A beautiful, tall woman with long, ravenous hair, and lunar-shaped, silver eyes. She looked like an older version of Manami, only her voice was different. More mature, softer, and stronger. Instead of wearing a long gown of lavender, she was wearing a beautiful, silk gown of white, which glowed brilliantly in the darkness. Manami rose to her feet to meet the woman, and saw that the woman was smiling softly to her.

"Who…who are you?" Manami asked her softly. She remembered that the woman was named Nami from the vision she had.

"You already know who I am, Manami Akatsuki. I have been the one protecting you for all these years. I am you," the woman spoke to her. Manami was confused.

"You're…me? But how? I'm me," Manami asked, confused by her words. Manami could feel a tear in her mind pull apart, but she didn't know why.

"Your heart is torn in two ways, Manami. Years ago, when you born, I was reincarnated into your body, and has been able to protect and shelter you all your life when someone calls out my name," the woman spoke to her. Manami was still confused. She didn't understand. Reincarnation? Her name? The woman obviously saw the confusion on her face, as she spoke again. "Have you ever noticed your frequent black-outs and lack of memory of certain events? That is because I have surfaced within your mind. I have been the one in control. And because I am in control, you have been pushed under surface, forcing your mind to slumber until someone speaks your name."

"But…how…how is this possible?" Manami asked, fear running through her veins, as she remembered the few people she had been friends with suddenly falling into comas, and finding herself in one place with no memory of how she got there. Manami wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly feeling cold, and alone.

"I don't know how, but I wanted you to know who I was before I left," Nami spoke to the young girl.

"Leave? Where are you going? I'm suddenly finding out about you, yet I don't understand anything! Why? Why have you forced my friends into comas? Why is that I have no memory of certain events? Where did you come from? Why me?" Manami asked repeatedly. Nami smiled at the confused girl, and continued explaining.

"Your heart is now starting to come together as one. You had a split personality for most of your life due to the stress and tormenting chaos that plagued you. Now…you are no longer plagued by stress, and the chaos is coming to an end. My purpose for being a part of you has been fulfilled. My power was never meant to harm anyone, but merely to protect you. And I have done that," Nami spoke, approaching the young girl. She held out a hand to Manami's face, and gently stroked away the tears. "Don't cry anymore, Manami. You're never alone, not even when there's no one around you. There's always someone watching over you, taking care of you…and protecting you. Just remember that."

With that, the woman turned and walked into the shadows, but as she did so, the shadows and darkness surrounding Manami started to split, and vanished in a burst of light. Manami shielded her eyes, and when she looked up, she found herself staring at a bright figure shrouded in pure white light. An angel. The woman…Nami, was an angel? Manami fell to her knees, confused, but…all of a sudden, she felt warm…and safe. She closed her eyes, allowing the light to surround her completely. As Manami sat there, completely engulfed within the pure, beautiful light, along her back formed a faded figure, in the form of white wings, shining as brightly as the stars. Manami folded her hands together, and looked up into the light, tears falling along her face. She never felt so at peace before. She never felt so relaxed…happy…and safe….

"_Manami, you are the rose of an angel…."

* * *

_

FD: Well, that's all for now. There's only one more chapter or so left, and then the story is done! Complete! Finished! Sorry it took me so long to update, but I had a thousand ideas for how to end it, and wasn't sure with which one to go with. I decided, though, to end Nami's existence in the story, as I don't plan on having her in the sequel, if I plan on making one. If you want, check out my other stories on under the username blackroserika. Seriously, though, tell me if you think I should make a sequel by taking my poll. Anyway, until next time. Peace!


	25. A Cry From Heaven

A Cry From Heaven

* * *

The trees of the thick woods broke apart from one another into a clearing of a meadow in the middle of the woods. Branches thick and dark tangled into webs above in the canopy, birds singing sweet lullabies to the sky, while bright sunlight streamed in through broken spots in the canvas above, creating bright yellow stars above and shimmering a golden halo onto the green grass, more specifically around a certain figure lying in the grass below. This person was lovely and beautiful, unconscious, and laid like an angel below the beautiful world of the trees. Her skin was creamy white, her hair blowing away from her face and into the grass in thick black vines that tangled deep into the blades of grass, her eyes closed, her arms bent at an angle around her head, and her full red lips were parted as she breathed. Her chest moved barely against her breaths, and a lark flew down to rest beside her chest, her heartbeat calm and sounding to the creature's ears. The lark moved closer to her, and rubbed its feathered body against her arm.

The girl remained still in the falling sunlight, her mind flashing with a collection of blurred and unclear, unfamiliar images from long lost dreams, hazed and foggy to her mind, but they were memories none the less. She saw things she had never seen before, from her own eyesight. She saw many things, many lost memories that she had since forgotten, and it was like a secret Pandora's box had opened, and released into her mind a flood of raging memories long since forgotten. Most of them she didn't recognize, puzzle pieces of an already conflicted image, but then some she could link together with her own memories, and the missing pieces fit in with the overall image, connecting the confusing others together. Soon, her memory was whole, full, and complete. The voice echoing in her ear had ceased, and nothing but still silence greeted her in this dark realm. She then had other things float to her mind, priorities, responsibilities, and people whom she was willing to protect and care for.

Her family, her friends....

These things awoke her, and with a soft sigh, her eyelashed fluttered open to reveal the soft gray pools behind them, staring at the lark beside her arm. The bird saw her, and for a moment didn't move, but then with a fluttering of wings, it flew into the air and back into the branches above. The girl followed the bird with her eyes, sitting up in the grass, and looking above into this natural world around her. A tranquility came about her, a still peace that washed away all confusion and fear from her. She felt nothing but bliss in this natural world. She belonged here.

This place...it made her into a different person. Things were much different now. She could feel it. In her person, in her heart, in everything, she knew there were things now about herself that had suddenly changed. And she embraced this feeling, enjoying it and keeping it with her as she wanted it to stay.

Nothing was going to take this new being that she was away. No one.

Now she just needed a name for this new person that she was....

"Manami!"

At once the girl looked up as a young man came racing towards her, an older boy with a clean shaven head that gleamed in the sunlight that streamed in through the thick leaves above, glittering like stars down upon his scalp. His sunglasses were clenched in his hand as he ran towards her, his familiar cold gray eyes staring down at her with fear and concern flashing within them. He leaned down and placed his hand on her back, keeping her leveled, while he spoke to her, staring deep into her eyes.

"Nami?"

He looked into her eyes, searching for the shadows, the twinkle of light that meant there was still that other being within her, that sacred, holy, and wonderful soul that existed alongside his little sister's. He searched in her eyes, looking for a sign, looking for anything. He didn't notice the playful, friendly smile crossing her full red lips.

"You know I hate it when you call me that," came the light, soft tone that he knew, the quiet, shy voice that belonged to his little sister, Manami. He looked at her, shocked, and then smiled. He couldn't, however, hold back the tears that flooded to his eyes, crystal droplets that were in grief. He now realized that he was too late. She was gone. The woman that he loved, the person he had fallen for, was gone now. No more was Nami inside her.

"Yeah, sorry," he responded to her, standing up, and offering her his hand. He pulled her onto her feet. He couldn't even remember a time when he had called her that name and she had told him that she didn't like being called that, as usually calling her such would awaken the spirit that used to reside inside her, and she wouldn't remember it. He pulled her into an embrace and held her close, teardrops falling from his eyes along his cheeks. He buried his face in her thick black hair, and he felt the soft warmth of her body against his own.

"Sakuya?" she pulled away and looked up at him. She reached up and touched a tear on his cheek, wiping it away. "Why are you crying?"

"Nothing, kiddo," he told her.

He looked at her, and he saw the two women that he loved. He saw his little sister, his beloved Manami, the sweet, innocent little girl, and then he saw Nami. He saw the woman that she was through his little sister, the woman that his sister will eventually become. He loved them both, equally, and there was no denying the fact that one couldn't exist without the other. But in this fact, it was now shown that they were both each other. Nami may not surface anymore, she may not reveal herself any longer, but that didn't mean that she didn't exist. She did. She was just the same as Manami. Manami was Nami. Nami was Manami. They were the same person now, living forever as one. Perhaps that was the way it was meant to be all along.

"Come on, kiddo. We need to go make sure your friends are okay."

"Alright."

He took her hand and began to lead her away from that meadow, but she stopped, pulling at his hand. He turned and looked at her, and saw the worried gaze in her eyes. She was looking ahead into the forest, peering into the dark shadows, the black world, beyond the towering trees into the forbidden territory of where the madness had happened.

"What about...?" her sentence trailed, and he knew she was still afraid. Sakuya smiled at her.

"Don't worry about that anymore. Sameshima and the others will take care of it. This matter will be handled by them. _We'll_ deal with it later on. Now, come on. I'm sure your friends are worried about you."

And with that he convinced her to walk on, to accompany him through the woods, back towards the academy. Not once did she look back into the meadow, not once did she think or grieve for what had just occured. But her heart fluttered when the wind touched her again, and barely whispered into her ear a few unclear words that she heard, and these words grabbed her attention, but she continued on.

"_My promise fulfilled...._"

* * *

"Manami!"

The young woman gasped as she was practically swung into the arms of several different people at once, first a blond girl, then a brown-haired boy, and so many other people at once, it was like a blur of colors before her eyes. She closed her eyes to prevent herself from getting dizzy due to this. However, not one of the persons that embraced her or held her was whom she wanted. No, that person was in a room, being treated for the wound on his arm. She wondered what was going through that person's mind at the moment, if they hated her, or if they wanted anything to do with her. She was praying that it was neither.

"Are you alright?! Are you hurt?! Do you need to see a doctor?!" Asuka and Judai were frantically asking a million questions at once, and all she could do was shake her head. She didn't need a doctor. She didn't feel any pain. She wasn't hurt. A little dazed and unstable, but not hurt.

"I'm fine. Really." She smiled at them very softly, which confused everyone, seeing as how most of them were still confused by the events in the trees just a couple of hours ago. "Actually, I need to see Daichi."

"That's not a good idea right now, Manami," Sho told her very quietly, and this was a horrid shot at her confidence and courage. Her head bowed in regret and guilt, knowing that he didn't want to see her anymore. She could understand. After all, she had just endangered their lives, she had gotten them involved in all of this. It was her fault. It was her fault that he was hurt.

"Oh. Alright." She said this very calmly, but the sadness was definite in her tone.

"Besides, anyways, Manami, you have to get checked out by the doctors. We want to make sure you're okay," Sakuya informed her, but she shook her head.

"I'm fine. Really. Anyways, I...I have something I have to take care of," she informed her brother, but she didn't move from the place that she stood in the hospital ward's hallway. She was trying to collect her thoughts in her head, trying to see through the blurry images and flashes of memories. They were all coming back, all recollecting in her mind, and it was traumatic on her conscious.

She had to make a decision now. She had to figure out what she needed to do, what would be best for herself and her friends and family. Everything literally weighed on her shoulders now. After the events that had occured today, after everything that had just happened around her, she knew things were going to be entirely different now. She saw in her mind what might occur, and it all led to one thing. Everyone around her getting hurt, everyone around her being involved and putting their lives in danger. All for her. She had already put too many people in danger and involved. It was because of her that she couldn't be with her family. It was because of her that she was in Witness Protection and had endangered her entire family. It was because of her that she couldn't see her father, her mother, or be able to hug her little brother close and tell him everything will be alright. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she knew now what had to be done to protect all of them.

She couldn't inform anyone of her choice. At least, not yet. She knew what she had decided was the right thing to do, it was proper, and it would help everyone in the long run. She turned on her heels and walked away from there, heading in the opposite direction towards the exit of the hospital ward, and towards Sameshima's office. She knew she had to inform him of not only the situation and what had happened, but what she wanted to do. She was making a huge sacrifice, she was doing everything in her power to protect the ones she loved. Even if that put her own blessed happiness aside for them. This was what she had to do. She had to keep everyone safe.

* * *

A soft rapping knock came from behind the doors of Sameshima's office, but he didn't need to ask to know who it was. He called for the visitor to come in, and wasn't surprised to see that it was Akatsuki Manami. She stood there in front of his door like a shy child, and he smiled, seeing the same little girl he had seen during her entrance exams into the academy. She looked up, her silver eyes bright and sparkling in the afternoon sun, but her lips were still and frowning very sorrowfully.

"Manami! I wasn't expecting to see you! I heard about what had happened, though. About what Abruzzi had done. You're incredibly lucky, young lady. You made it out of there alive. And your friends were willing to stick by you through that. I must say, you should be grateful for what has accured," Sameshima was more complimenting her, when in her mind she felt that she should be criticized for allowing everyone to be involved. Her guilt only grew heavier, but this man wouldn't silence himself. "You should be down in the hospital ward, though. The doctors should be attending to you--"

"I'm fine, Sameshima. I just needed to speak with you," she informed him.

"Yes, of course! What is it?" he asked of her very lightly, but she took a long moment to muster up what she needed to say.

As she spoke, though, the man's face slowly distorted into disbelief and shock. It took her a well fifteen minutes to explain her requests, her reasons, and in the long run, the end results of such. When she was finally done, there was a long moment of awkward silence between them, and then Sameshima was shaking his head in utter shock. But he had no choice.

"Alright. I guess there's no way to convince you otherwise."

"There really isn't, sir. I'm sorry."

"Are you sure that this would be best?"

"Yes. I'm incredibly certain."

She looked beyond him towards the setting sun against the horizon, the orange skies creating an omen for her, a sign of this time ending. Twilight would come soon, the day would end, and with it, so would her chaotic and wild life. No one would be hurt anymore because of her. She would make sure of that.

* * *

When the sun finally did set, the students dispersed towards their dormitories to recooperate and try to move on from this struggle. The rest of the academy was unaware of the violence that had occured, nor were they aware of the Marshalls arriving by boat to the island to escort an arrested John Abruzzi and his minions from there. No one saw Manami at all since then, as she had disappeared again, but not in a worried, frantic state like before. They knew Manami was alright, that she was fine, but only one person was truly stressing out over her, panicking for her.

Misawa Daichi was in his dorm room, wincing slightly in pain as he touched his stitched and bandaged arm, relieved that no arteries or fatal places had been hit. The doctors had informed him that he would make a full recovery. But in his mind, there were other things grabbing his attention other than his injury. His mind kept going back to the woods, to the dark, shadowy trees, to the helicopter and the men that crowded around it. He kept worrying about her, if she was alright, and about the situation that had happened. Her words kept echoing in his ear, trying to make sense of them.

_"No, I'm not Manami...."_

It was a brief, unnoticed sentence that the girl had spoken, but it seemed like right after she had suddenly changed it, taking it back, as if hiding it.

_"I am Manami. I just guess you haven't seen me like this...."_

He knew, though. He knew that the woman they had seen wasn't Manami. It may have been her body, her physically, but it was like a different person lived through her, lived inside her. He didn't know this other woman, but he knew why she was there. She was determined to protect Manami, to keep her safe, to shield her. Just as he would. He loved Manami, and a part of him deeply cared for that other person. But he wondered, if the next time he saw her, would he see that person again? And if he did, what would he do? What _could_ he do? His beloved was suffering with two different beings inside her, one that he adored and loved as this particularly shy and lonely girl, and the other that was a complete stranger to him, a forceful, aggressive, and violent person. Could he love them both? Was that even possible?

"I love you, Daichi...."

"Manami." He sighed and got up from the bed to walk over to the window. He peered out into the falling dark night, lamps turning on in the walkway to illuminate the darkness to the students that were walking about. There was no one out there. No one that he instantly recognized though. He blinked, and then he saw a figure moving in the shadows just beyond the walkway, spinning in the luminescent golden light that washed over the black pavement. He at first couldn't clearly see the figure, but then he saw, in the golden light, a pale of silver eyes staring up at the dormitory. He at once recognized those eyes in the abyss of shadows, and without thinking, without being rational, he stormed out of his room and through the halls of the dormitory, until he was at last outside in the night.

The cool night air was comforting, soft, and caressing to his face, combing through his hair and gentle like fingertips stroking his face. He stopped short of his steps and felt his body give in to the tender touch of the night, his heart fluttering with the amazing wind that floated about him, whispering affectionately in his ear. He paused for a moment, truly enjoying the night, but when he opened his eyes, it seemed to him that the person waiting for him on the walkway was further away now than he thought. He rushed to this person, running on the paved concrete, until at last he came into clear view of them.

Manami stood before him very elegantly, her thin and frail body dressed in a very light white gown that flowed around her like an inverted lily that came just down to her knees, while the spaghetti straps of the gown fit over her shoulders. Her black hair fell down her back and around her shoulders like the perfect frame, accentuating her pale white skin, and her silver eyes stared up at him with a large smile on her full red lips. She was very beautiful. There were no shadows in her eyes, no antagonistic emotions. Only bliss, peace, and happiness. And he couldn't help himself as he scooped her up into her arms and brought her close to him, feeling the warmth of her body to his. She smiled, but there was no blush to cross her face. This was new to him.

"Manami, I'm so happy you're okay," he told her cheerfully. She didn't say anything, but followed his actions, leaning close to meet his lips and kiss him very tenderly. Not passionately. It seemed as if the sparks had dimmed and were no longer as intense. This surprised him. What was she thinking?

"What happened? You didn't come back with us. Are you hurt?" he continued to ask her, and these were the same questions everyone had been asking her all afternoon. Her answer was the same.

"No, I'm not hurt. I'm fine."

"I was really worried," he leaned back in to kiss her again, but she pulled away this time, breaking out of his arms. His heart at once broke a little, shock thrumming through him. She had never pulled away like that before. It was like she was repulsed by him now. Or was it something else? Did she not love him anymore?

"Manami, what's wrong?" he asked of her, the worry in his voice clear.

"There's something I have to talk to you about, Daichi," she told him very softly, gentle, as if afraid her words would hurt him like knives.

"What is it?" he asked her, but she shook her head.

"Let's take a walk. Let's go down to the beach," she suggested to him, and he had no choice but to follow her.

The two of them made their way across the campus in uncomfortable silence towards the beach, the girl walking four to five paces ahead of him, nearly running down to the white sand. In the night, the beach was beyond words could describe, the ocean a black omniscient presence that crashed hard and merciless waves against the pure, soft, and white sand. The ocean made beautiful soft sounds against the shore as it repeatedly crashed over it, one by one, against the coast, and Daichi stared in bisbelief as the woman that he loved made her way down to water's edge, her back turned to him. She looked like a goddess, an angel standing against the black sky and ocean, amongst the white sand, her dress billowing away from her body with the gust of the sea. She looked incredible, absolutely angelic, and he felt that if he approached her or grew too close, she would fade away and disappear into oblivion, never to come back. She was complete, perfection to his eyes, and she made him feel whole. She made him feel like every missing factor in his life was nonexistent, and that she really did complete him. In his heart, he knew that since his birth, he was meant to be with her, and that he was the lucky one, having found someone so spectacular.

"Manami?" he called to her, but she didn't turn to him or respond back. She just continued to stare out into the black ocean. She took a step closer, burying her feet beneath the frothy waters, enjoying the ice cold touch against her skin. The wind was very cool, but gentle and affectionate. Fingers of the spirits combed through her hair, and she sighed with release to the world around her.

"Manami," Daichi was closer now, right behind her, and he reached to grab her hand, but he knew that if he touched, she would indeed vanish.

She turned from the ocean to face him, and her silver eyes were stunning in the dark night, like bits of the moon themselves. He stared into them, dumbfounded by the person he was seeing. He wasn't seeing the shy Manami, nor was he seeing the other person that lived inside her. No, this was being was different, separate. It was the both of them, together at last, but like an otherworld person, formed and molded to become something new. He saw the unfamiliar strange glimmer in her eyes, no sorrow, no pain, no suffering, just a faint light, a twinkle of a star, and that was all.

"I can't deny how I feel for you, Daichi. I can't resist the emotions that I have for you, how strongly I need you, how much I _desire_ you. There's no doubt about any of it. I am in love with you," she started speaking very softly, her voice mellow and calm, but barely audible over the sound of the waves.

"And I love you," he answered, reaching to grab her face and kiss her, but once again, she pulled back.

"That is why I am doing this. I can't stand knowing that I'll be responsible for everyone getting involved and getting hurt. It wasn't my intention for you to be involved in this, anyways. I can barely stand myself for letting you get hurt in the first place," her eyes fell on his arm where the bandages covered the wound. The wound that she had caused. His hand flew up to try and conceal them, though the very touch of it caused him to wince. She closed her eyes, her emotions restrained, all but guilt, that is.

"This isn't your fault, Manami. It was my own stupid self--"

"No, it wasn't your fault, Daichi. You saved me. You protected me. I couldn't ask for that. I can't even ask for your love, your dedication. You love me far too much. And I'm not worthy of it. That's why I made my decision today."

"Wait, what decision?!" Daichi grabbed her shoulders and forced her to look him in the eye. However, he already saw the answer.

"I'm leaving, Daichi. Tomorrow, I'll be leaving the academy, heading home, to be with my family. They need me more now than ever."

"What?!" he released her, but his entire person turned to stone, cold and immobile stone.

"I have to do this, Daichi. It's the only way to keep everyone here safe...the only way to keep _you_ safe. I don't want to be the reason for you or anyone else getting killed."

"Manami--"

At once, she grabbed him and forced her lips to his, silencing his protest. At first, he was frozen, but then he slowly returned her kiss, his fingers wrapping into her hair and bringing her further into it. However, before the kiss could escalate to anything more, she pulled away again.

"I love you, with all my heart and soul. So I'm asking you to just trust me on this. This will keep you safe."

"Will I ever see again, though?" he asked her, knowing that once she leaves here, both his and her life will go into different directions, and he doubted if their paths would ever cross.

She smiled kindly at him.

"I'm sure we will. After all, I think we're destined for each other."

* * *

There was perhaps no madness quite like the next day in which nearly the entire school crowded about on the docks to see off one of their own, their classmate. Classes were excused as the departing of a good friend took place, and everything was in a fury of excitement and grief. Students clamored together to cheer or sob goodbye. However, back in the dormitories, one person was hesitant to leave their room, knowing that it would be the last time they would ever see it. The walls were stripped barren of any drawings or sketches, which were packed in a portfolio in one of her suitcases. All clothes and belongings were put in their place in her bags, her sketchbook amongst the clutter of things in her bags, and everything was cleaned, dusted, and made presentable for the next person to live in this room. The glass wall that peered out into the island before her showed her a bright and clear blue sky, no clouds, and bright golden sunlight streamed in through the glass pane, illuminating the room beautifully.

She was going to miss this room, this place, this island, but it had to happen. This was going to make everyone that she cared about safe and protected. The only way to truly take care of them is to stay out of their lives. This was going to be a sad goodbye, but it was the only way.

As she left the dormitory, she said goodbye to a few students here and there, but she walked alone down the walkway towards the docks, a crowd of people following her as she went. She at last came to the docks where the yacht waited for her to board, and waiting for her was her brother, Sakuya, standing beside Sameshima and Chronos. As she made her way through the thick crowd of people, and as she came to the docks, she found her friends there waiting for her. Sakuya immediately came to grab her bags while she hugged and said her goodbyes to everyone there. The last person she came to was Misawa Daichi, who looked as if he'd rather be anywhere else but there. She couldn't blame him for that as she embraced him and kissed him.

"I know you'll probably hate me, but trust me, this is for the best," she assured him, but he shook his head.

"How can you be so sure of that?" he asked of her. She just smiled.

"I don't know, I just do," she said as she lifted herself up and kissed him sweetly again. He pulled away quickly.

"Oh, and to let you know, I don't hate you. I can never hate you," he informed her. He smiled when he saw the twinkle in her eyes. "I love you."

"I love you," she echoed when she brought him back for another kiss, only this one was so passionate that it could set the entire island on fire and neither one of them would have noticed. It took a long moment for someone to clear their throat, and without a blush she at last slipped her hand from his and joined her brother on board the boat.

Once on deck she turned and waved to all of them, blowing kisses, and acting as if she was leaving on board of the Titanic. Like such, this one didn't have a happy ending, it didn't have the two lovers bonded together for all eternity. No, this story was coming to an end fast, and as Daichi watched the boat slowly fade away into the horizon, he bit his bottom lip and held back the sorrow that was surfacing. The ship disappeared into the sunlight, and Daichi was standing there with his friends. Judai instantly turned to him, Asuka by his side, and comforted him the best that he possibly could.

"You know, Daichi, it's better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all." It wasn't making Daichi feel better.

"Yeah, I've heard that one a million times before," Daichi pointed out to him, and shook his head. He will miss Manami. That was without a doubt.

"Oh, and Daichi! Manami told me to give this to you!" Asuka instantly pulled from her person a small plastic case with a note attached to the top of it. He took it, and stared down at the note. "She said it will help you. I don't know what she meant by that."

He looked from Asuka to the note taped to the case, and he read the words within his mind, echoed by Manami's voice, as if she was speaking directly to him.

_"When you listen to this song, I hope you will always think of me.  
And know that I love you with everything in me.  
You are my angel, my soul mate, my true love.  
And I'll never forget you.  
Especially when it rains._

_I love you._"

Daichi put the CD case away, only to later play it in his room alone when he would bury his face in a pillow and allow himself to cry in mourn for her leaving. As he would listen to the song, he would hear Manami's voice slowly singing to him, like the beautiful angel that she was, singing to him the miraculously beautiful song that he now loved so dearly, as much as he loved her.

_"When it rains, I don't mind  
Let me stand here all night  
Did she take her own life?  
Let me know she's alright._

_And every time it rains  
I feel her holding me  
And every time it rains  
All the angels cry out_

_I'll stay strong, I'll be fine  
Carry on with my life  
I'll still stare at the sky  
Pray for rain all the time_

_Why'd you run?  
Did you hide?  
Why'd you leave?  
No goodbye?  
When the clouds take the sky  
Does the snow give you life?_

_And every time it rains  
I feel her holding me  
And every time it rains  
All the angels cry out_

_I'll never be the same...."_

* * *

FD: This is the very last chapter of the Kiss From A Rose story. Unfortunately, I will not be adding anymore to the story, but I will be rewriting the story to make it more original. I will give an excerpt of the first couple of chapters of the alternative version, but it will not be posted any here. Instead, you can check it out on under the name Liz's Dystopia, where it will have the same title...maybe. I'm actually thinking of renaming it. Anyways, I do apologize for taking so long to update, but unfortunately, life is hectic, it's wild, and I barely have time to sit down and write anything anymore. I will not be continuing fanfictions, though. I wanted to finish this one, and maybe one other, but as of now I am discontinuing any fanfictions, and will be working on original pieces on . I'm sorry to those who are unhappy about this, but this is my choice. I am sorry.

As a heads up, the last song mentioned above is titled "Rain Song" by the band Cold. It was originally the song that I was going to link with this last chapter, because I think it fits perfectly. I'm sorry to those who are upset about either how long I took to update or my decision with my writings. I'm very sorry. Thank you though for being patient and reviewing my works how often as you have. I appreciate it.


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